Newton, Corky 1947-
Newton, Corky 1947-
PERSONAL:
Born November 3, 1947, in McKeesport, PA; daughter of Henry and Leona Avner; married Lowell W. Newton (a professor), February 13, 1971; children: Natalie, Ted. Ethnicity: "Caucasian." Education: Tulane University, B.S. Politics: Republican. Hobbies and other interests: Tennis, running, gardening, dogs.
ADDRESSES:
Home—Naples, FL; Floyds Knobs, IN. E-mail—[email protected].
CAREER:
Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., Louisville, KY, worked in computer technology, marketing research, corporate planning, human resources, recruitment, training, and finally as vice president for corporate responsibility and youth smoking prevention, between 1969 and 2000; writer, 2000—.
MEMBER:
WRITINGS:
Generation Risk: How to Protect Your Teenager from Smoking and Other Dangerous Behavior, M. Evans and Co. (New York, NY), 2001.
SIDELIGHTS:
Corky Newton once told CA: "Most advice books to parents about teenagers are written by psychologists. A number of recently published books explore teenage feelings about risk, but no one has combined this knowledge with an understanding of tobacco and applied it specifically to the issue of youth smoking.
"When I worked for Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corporation, I was determined to keep our advertising from being directed at kids, to be sure that employees, suppliers, advertising agencies, and subcontractors all knew that we were not trying to sell our products to kids. But more importantly, I established a new department within the company and founded partnerships with a wide range of organizations that work with kids—to help keep kids from starting to smoke. That commitment and philosophy formed the foundation of Generation Risk: How to Protect Your Teenager from Smoking and Other Dangerous Behavior.
"The writing process for this book was the beginning of a whole new way of life for me. I discovered that most people like being interviewed, and that many have truly interesting things to say. I love writing and plan to do more now that I've retired from my business career. I also have a deep appreciation for computers and word processing software, the salvation of the editing process. Thanks to this outstanding technical capability, an author has the wherewithal to develop hundreds of drafts, to reorganize thoughts, to refine ideas, to add insights, and to polish prose.
"More importantly, I can now spend quality time with my dog while writing. She provides companionship, positive reinforcement, and inspiration, and she serves as a model for many of life's lessons.
"My next work will be a humorous novel about quirky characters in a large corporation. My biggest challenge now is finding time to come off the tennis court and spend more time writing."
BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:
PERIODICALS
Booklist, February 1, 2001, Vanessa Bush, review of Generation Risk: How to Protect Your Teenager from Smoking and Other Dangerous Behavior, p. 1029.
Publishers Weekly, January 15, 2001, review of Generation Risk, p. 72.