Biographical Information:
Scope and Contents
Arrangement of Materials:
Conditions Governing Access:
Conditions Governing Use:
Preferred Citation:
Processing Information:
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & Archives
Title: Rena Krasno Collection
Creator:
Krasno, Rena, 1923-2009
Identifier/Call Number: OCH.RKC
Extent:
9.04 linear feet
Date (inclusive): 1922-2009
Abstract: Rena Krasno was born in Shanghai in
1923. Her parents, two stateless Russian Jews, fled Russia two years before her birth.
Krasno grew up in a Jewish community in Shanghai, but fled to Israel in 1949 just before
communist forces took control of Shanghai. She held a prestigious position as translator for
the United Nations, and was a published author. Krasno wrote several books about World War
II in Shanghai, her life in Japan, and her Jewish heritage, as well as essays regarding
Jewish and Chinese history. The collection consists of documents, correspondence,
presentation notes, and research papers regarding Rena's life in Shanghai, Japan, and in the
United States, and documents her research, involvement with various Jewish organiations, and
experiences living in wartime Shanghai.
Language of Material: German,
English,
Hebrew,
Japanese,
Polish,
Russian
Biographical Information:
Rena Krasno was born in Shanghai, China in 1923. Her parents, two stateless Russian Jews,
fled Russia two years before her birth. Krasno grew up in a Jewish community in Shanghai and
attended the French Municipal College where she earned her Brevet Superieur and
Baccalaureate (Philosophy Section). She later entered the Faculty of Medicine at the Jesuit
Aurora University (now called Shanghai School of Medicine #2), where she studied for two
years during World War II. She left Shanghai for Israel in April of 1949, just one month
before communist forces took over the city.
Due to Krasno's language skills in English, French, Russian, Hebrew, Spanish, and German,
she was able to obtain a prestigious position as translator for the United Nations. She also
worked as a freelance interpreter for international organizations (Unesco, ILO, FAO, the
Olympic Committee at the Winter Games in Sapporo, etc.) in Europe and Asia. In Japan, Krasno
was a frequent interpreter for the National Institute of Educational Research (Tokyo) and
worked for Simul International and I.S.S., and also served as Honorary Chancellor of Austria
in Seoul, Korea.
Krasno was also a published author. She wrote several books about wartime in Shanghai, her
life in Japan, and her Jewish heritage as well as essays regarding Jewish and Chinese
history. One book in particular entitled,
That Last Glorious Summer,
1939: Shanghai-Japan,
is based on Krasno's diary as a young teenager on a summer
vacation in Japan on the eve of war. Additionally, Krasno shared her life experience and
historical knowledge as a guest speaker for numerous organizations such as the Jewish
Working Women's Network of the Jewish Federation of the Sacramento Region. Krasno died in
2009.
Scope and Contents
The
Rena Krasno Collection is divided into three series:
Personal Materials (1928-2009),
Professional
Works and Presentations
(1948-2009),
and
Research Materials (1922-2009).
Series I,
Personal Materials, includes correspondence,
photographs, biographical information on Krasno, documents related to her family, including
her father D.B. Rabinovich, and articles about Krasno.
Series II,
Professional Works
and Presentations, is divided into two subseries:
Presentations (1995-2007) and
Authored
Works
(1948-2009). The
Presentations subseries consists
of correspondence, articles, transcripts, advertisements, and other documents related to
multiple presentations and speeches given by Krasno. The
Authored
Works
subseries contains drafts, corrections, reviews, press, and other documents
related to articles and books written by Krasno, most notably
Strangers Always - A Jewish Family in Wartime Shanghai,
Struggle in Shanghai: Historic Journals of Fred Marcus, and
Once Upon a Time in Shanghai: A Jewish Woman's Journey Through the
20th Century China
.
Series III,
Research Materials, is divided into two subseries:
Articles and Publications (1927-2009) and
General Research (1922-2005). The
Articles and
Publications
subseries consists of publications, including both newspaper and
scholarly articles, related to Krasno's research. The
General
Research
subseries consists of articles, correspondence, programs, narratives, and
other documents collected by Krasno on Shanghai, Jewish refugees, and other Old China
Hands.
Arrangement of Materials:
Series I: Personal Materials, 1928-2009
Series II: Professional Works and Presentations, 1948-2009
Subseries A: Presentations, 1995-2007
Subseries B: Authored Works, 1948-2009
Series III: Research Materials, 1922-2009
Subseries A: Articles and Publications, 1927-2009
Subseries B: General Research, 1922-2005
Related Material
Conditions Governing Access:
The collection is open for research use.
Conditions Governing Use:
Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of
this collection has not been transferred to California State University, Northridge.
Copyright status for other materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials
protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires
the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be
commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any
use rests exclusively with the user.
Preferred Citation:
For information about citing items in this collection consult the appropriate style manual,
or see the
Citing Archival Materials
guide.
Processing Information:
Tim Kaufler, 2012
Jessica Geiser, 2013
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Maps
Documents
Photographs
Audiovisual materials