Arne Thorén

Björn Arne Jerker Thorén (24 March 1927 – 23 February 2003) was a Swedish journalist and diplomat. As correspondent in the United States he submitted between 7,000 and 8,000 reports for Sveriges Radio and informed the Swedish people of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, of the first man on the moon and of the Watergate scandal. In the 1980s and 1990s Thorén served as Consul General of Sweden in Chicago and New York City and as Ambassador of Sweden in Iraq.

Early life

Thorén was born on 24 March 1927 in Gothenburg, Sweden, the son of editor-in-chief Jerker Thorén and his wife Helen Setterberg (1902–1991).[1] He was the older brother of the journalist and TV host Ulf Thorén (1929–1978) and Görel Thorén-Mellby (1932–2012).[2]

Career

He attended Gothenburg University College (Göteborgs högskola) from 1946 to 1947 and the University of South Dakota from 1948 to 1949. Thorén worked for Göteborgs Handels- och Sjöfartstidning and Expressen in 1950 and he was Expressen's New York City correspondent from 1952 to 1964.[1] He was part of Sveriges Radio's newsroom from 1956 to 1964 and was Sveriges Radio's chief correspondent in New York City from 1964 to 1977.[3] It was Thorén who, with his characteristic voice, told the Swedish people of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, of the first man on the moon, of the Watergate scandal and other events. For the radio alone, he submitted between 7,000 and 8,000 reports. After 28 years in the US, Thorén returned to Sweden and to his childhood city Gothenburg.[4]

Thorén was managing editor at Göteborgs-Posten from 1977 to 1980.[3] Thorén's diplomatic career began in 1980 when he was appointed Consul General of Sweden in Chicago. He then served as Ambassador of Sweden Baghdad, Iraq from 1983 to 1988. Thorén served in Baghdad during the Iran–Iraq War and was an important reporter home to Sweden and Olof Palme, who was the special mediator of the United Nations in the Iran–Iraq War.[5] After Iraq, Thorén served as Consul General of Sweden in New York City from 1988 to 1992.[3]

Thorén was deputy chairman of the Foreign Press Association in New York City in 1962 and a member of the executive committee of the United Nations Correspondents Association from 1959 to 1964.[1] He was chairman of the United Nations Correspondents Association in 1975 and of the Dag Hammarskjöld Memorial Fund from 1972 to 1977 and of Örgryte IS from 1978 to 1980.[3]

Later life

Thorén moved to Össjö in Skåne County together with his wife Eva. Thorén was a short-term party leader for the Pensioners' Party (Pensionärspartiet) that he took the initiative to start. One issue he ran as a party leader was discrimination against older people in society and working life. He was also a sought-after speaker.[4]

Personal life

Thorén first married in 1951 to Elise Wickes Merrit (1924–2004), at the time employed at the United States Embassy in Stockholm, daughter of Mrs. Helen Peterson Merrit, Washington, D.C. They had the children Stephen Arne Thorén (born 1951), diplomat Michele Thorén Bond (born 1953) and Peter L. Thorén (born 1956). They divorced in 1963. The wife remarried to Thomas A. Callaghan.[6][7]

He was then married 1964–1966 to Margareta Bahrton[1] (born 1937), the daughter of Tage Bahrton and Ebba Ekvall. They had one daughter, Cecilia Usher (born 1965).

In 1966 he married Eva Berch (born 1931), the daughter of Otto Berch and Saga (née Lennartson).[3]

Death

Thorén died in his home in Össjö, Skåne County[4] on 23 February 2003. He was interred on 15 March 2003 at Össjö Cemetery.[8]

Awards and honours

• Stora Journalistpriset (1969)[4]
• Honorary Doctor of Philosophy, North Park College, Chicago (1983)[3]
• Honorary Doctor of Philosophy, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois (1983)[3]

Bibliography

• Thorén, Arne; Thorén, Ulf; Tecknar-Anders (1969). Från min sida sett. Bonniers folkbibliotek, 99-0133706-2 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Bonnier. SELIBR 1712543.
• Thorén, Arne, ed. (1969). De första stegen på månen: ett komplett minnesalbum från den första månlandningen. Stockholm: Studio Cicero. SELIBR 2310372.

References

1. Davidsson, Åke, ed. (1968). Vem är vem?. 5, Norrland : supplement, register [Who's Who?. 5, Norrland : supplements, directory] (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Vem är vem. p. 955. SELIBR 53513.
2. Sveriges dödbok 1901-2009 [Swedish death index 1901-2009] (in Swedish) (Version 5.0 ed.). Solna: Sveriges släktforskarförbund. 2010. ISBN 9789187676598. SELIBR 11931231.
3. Salander Mortensen, Jill, ed. (1996). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1997 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1997] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. pp. 1115–1116. ISBN 91-1-960852-7. SELIBR 3681533.
4. Vidlund, Susanna (23 February 2003). "Arne Thorén död". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Gothenburg. TT. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
5. "Arne Thorén är död". Expressen (in Swedish). TT. 23 February 2003. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
6. Wedding note in Svenska Dagbladet 6 April 1951 (Genealogical Society's archive).
7. "CALLAGHAN, ELISE WICKES MERRITT". The Washington Post. 15 August 2004.
8. "Björn Arne Jerker Thorén". www.gravar.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 11 June 2020.

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Tore Högstedt	Consul General of Sweden to Chicago 1980–1983	Succeeded by Lars Arnö
Preceded by Lars-Olof Brilioth	Ambassador of Sweden to Iraq 1983–1988	Succeeded by Henrik Amnéus
Preceded by Magnus Faxén	Consul General of Sweden to New York City 1988–1992	Succeeded by Dag Sebastian Ahlander