Priscilla Langford Buckley (October 17, 1921 ? March 25, 2012) ^{[1] [2]} was an American journalist and author who was the longtime managing editor of National Review .

Education [ edit ]

Buckley graduated with a degree in history in 1943 from Smith College , ^[3] while there, one of her best friends was Betty Friedan . ^{[4] [1]} Nancy Reagan was in the same graduating class at Smith as Buckley. ^[3]

Work for the CIA [ edit ]

She worked for the CIA in the 1950s and for United Press from 1944 to 1948 (in New York) and again from 1953 to 1956 (in Paris). ^{[5] [6]}

Work for National Review [ edit ]

Priscilla Buckley started working at William F. Buckley's publication, National Review , in 1956. ^[7] She became managing editor of the publication in 1959 following the retirement of the publication's original managing editor, Suzanne La Follette . ^[8] Whittaker Chambers recommended Buckley for the position. Buckley served as managing editor until 1985 and continued working at National Review until 1999. ^[7] She worked at National Review for a total of 43 years. ^[5] According to The New York Times , Buckley's influence at National Review led some to refer to the publication as "Miss Buckley’s Finishing School for Young Ladies and Gentlemen of Conservative Persuasion". ^[7] Writers whom she helped to train include Paul Gigot , Bill McGurn , Mona Charen , and Anthony R. Dolan . ^[9]

Publications [ edit ]

Buckley authored String of Pearls , a 2001 memoir about international journalism, and a 2005 book entitled Living It Up with National Review: A Memoir . ^{[10] [5]}

Personal life [ edit ]

Buckley was born in New York City. She was the third of 10 children of William Frank Buckley Sr. , and Aloise Josephine Antonia Steiner. Buckley's siblings included future United States Senator and federal judge James L. Buckley and William F. Buckley Jr. , a future conservative author. ^[7] Her nickname was "Pitts". ^[3]

Later years [ edit ]

Buckley died of kidney failure on March 25, 2012, at the age of 90 ^[7] at Great Elm, the house in Sharon , Connecticut , where she lived and where she and her siblings had grown up. ^[9]

References [ edit ]