Laura Huxley

Laura Huxley
Born Laura Archera
(1911-11-02)November 2, 1911
Turin, Italy
Died December 13, 2007(2007-12-13) (aged 96)
Hollywood, Los Angeles, US
Occupation Musician, author, psychological counselor, lecturer
Nationality Italian-American
Period 1963–1987
Genre Self-help, biography
Spouse Aldous Huxley

Laura Huxley (née Archera) (November 2, 1911 – December 13, 2007) was an Italian-American musician, author, psychological counselor and lecturer, and the wife of author Aldous Huxley.

Early life

Laura Archera was born in Turin, Italy, on November 2, 1911. She began playing the violin at the age of ten, studying in Berlin, Paris and Rome, where she earned a Professor of Music degree. She also studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, played in a major symphony orchestra and played before the Queen of Italy at the age of 14,[1] and performed at Carnegie Hall in her teens.

Life and career

In 1949, she was working as a freelance documentary filmmaker. According to her obituary in the Los Angeles Times, Archera called philosopher and author Aldous Huxley at home, saying that John Huston had promised to finance her proposed documentary film on the Palio di Siena if she could get Huxley to agree to write a screenplay. Archera then became close friends with Huxley and his first wife Maria, who died in 1955. In 1956, Archera married Huxley. She wrote several self-help books concerning human relations, including You Are Not the Target (1963) with a foreword written by Aldous Huxley.

After his death in 1963, she wrote This Timeless Moment: a personal view of Aldous Huxley (1968), a book describing life with her husband.

In 1977 she founded Children: Our Ultimate Investment, also known as "Our Ultimate Investment" or just OUI, a non-profit organization dedicated to the nurturing of the possible human. The organization sponsored a four-day conference also entitled Children: Our Ultimate Investment.

Film

She was a producer of documentary films, and an assistant film editor at RKO. Huxley appeared in Hofmann's Potion: The Early Years of LSD, a documentary from the National Film Board of Canada. Laura felt inspired to illuminate the story of their provocative marriage through Mary Ann Braubach's 2010 documentary, "Huxley on Huxley".[2]

Death

Laura Huxley died of cancer, aged 96, at her Hollywood Hills home.

Awards and honours

Huxley received widespread recognition for her humanistic achievements, including:

  • Honorary Doctorate of Human Services from La Sierra University
  • Honoree of the United Nations Fellow of the International Academy of Medical Preventics
  • The 1990 World Health Foundation for Development and Peace Prize
  • The 2003 Association of Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health Thomas R. Verny Award, for outstanding contributions to the field of prenatal and perinatal psychology.[3]

Bibliography

  • 1963 - You Are Not the Target - Metamorphous Press; Reissue edition (August 1995) ISBN 1-55552-009-X, ISBN 978-1-55552-009-0 foreword by Aldous Huxley
  • 1969 - This Timeless Moment - Celestial Arts; New Ed edition (December 2000) ISBN 0-89087-968-0, ISBN 978-0-89087-968-9
  • 1974 - Between Heaven and Earth - Hay House; Reprint edition (February 1, 1991) ISBN 0-937611-87-5, ISBN 978-0-937611-87-6
  • 1986 - Oneaday Reason to be Happy - Compcare Publications ISBN 0-89638-112-9, ISBN 978-0-89638-112-4
  • 1987 - The Child of Your Dreams (with Piero Ferrucci) - Compcare Publications ISBN 0-89638-110-2, ISBN 978-0-89638-110-0

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Valerie Corral (Spring 2008). "O Nobly Born". MAPS Bulletin. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, Inc. xviii (1): 42–48.
  2. ↑ "Huxley on Huxley". Dir. Mary Ann Braubach. Cinedigm, 2010. DVD.
  3. ↑ Association of Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health, Thomas R. Verny Award

References

  • Hawtree, Christopher (17 December 2007). "Obituary - Laura Huxley: Author, therapist, musician and muse to husband Aldous, she devoted her life to preserving his legacy". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-10-18.
  • "Laura Archera Huxley Wife of Aldous Huxley who championed the 'human potential movement' through books and a charitable foundation". The Times. December 17, 2007. Retrieved 2009-10-18.
  • Fox, Margalit (December 19, 2007). "Laura Huxley, Her Husband's Biographer, Dies at 96". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-18.
  • Los Angeles Times obituary
  • "Laura Huxley.(living treasure)(Brief Article)(Biography)". Mothering. September 1, 2004. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
  • "Huxley on Huxley". Dir. Mary Ann Braubach. Cinedigm, 2010. DVD.
  • Children: Our Ultimate Investment
  • Laura Huxley biography
  • Laura Huxley on IMDb
  • Documentary of the life of Laura and husband Aldous http://huxleyonhuxley.com/
  • 'Hofmann's Potion: The Early Years of LSD': http://www.nfb.ca/film/hofmanns_potion
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