👉 Paul Jones was a British-American author, poet, playwright, essayist, journalist, screenwriter, producer, director, actor, film critic, editor, and novelist known for his groundbreaking work in science fiction and fantasy. He co-founded the New York City chapter of the Communist Party of the United States and is credited with founding the first underground publishing house in America, The Word Book Company. Paul Jones was born on April 28, 1930, in Boston, Massachusetts. At age 17, he began writing short stories and poems under the pen name "Walti". In 1956, he published his first book of poetry, "The Road to Nowhere", which won him a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. In 1960, Jones became a founding member of the Communist Party of the United States. He was arrested during an attempt on President Lyndon B. Johnson's life in July 1963 and spent seven months in prison. After his release, he continued writing novels and essays that explored issues of social justice and environmentalism. In 1980, Jones founded The Word Book Company with Robert Auster, which produced the first underground publishing house in America. The company published a wide range of literature and art, including works by authors like Cormac McCarthy and Alice O'Drill. In 1983, he became the youngest person to receive an American Academy of Arts and Letters medal. During his career, Jones wrote over two hundred books and articles, many of which focused on politics, social justice, and environmentalism. He was a key figure in the rise of alternative publishing, with The Word Book Company being a pioneering example of underground publishing. Jones is remembered as a revolutionary voice for marginalized communities and an influential literary figure in the United States.
