Rosanne Klass

ROSANNE KLASS

Cedar Rapids

Rosanne T. Klass, 86, an accomplished writer who was one of the first Western women to live in and explore Afghanistan in the early 1950s, died July 21, 2015, in New York City after a long illness, surrounded by family and friends.

Although Ms. Klass remained devoted to Iowa, particularly Cedar Rapids, where she was born in 1929, she lived in New York City for more than 60 years.

Ms. Klass received a B.A. degree at the University of Wisconsin, where she began her career as a writer and journalist at the Daily Cardinal in 1947. She received a M.A. degree from Hunter College in New York.

Her first book, the well-reviewed "Land of the High Flags: A Travel Memoir of Afghanistan," edited by Albert Erskine and published by Random House in 1964, detailed her experiences living, teaching and traveling in Kabul and throughout Afghanistan and the region. In 2007, "Land of the High Flags" was republished by Odyssey Books with the subtitle "Afghanistan When the Going Was Good," which included additional new sections telling of the author's return to Afghanistan as a journalist – and what became of the friends she originally brought to life for her readers.

In 1987, Ms. Klass edited and co-authored "Afghanistan: The Great Game Revisited," published by Freedom House, which became the standard reference on the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and pre-Soviet history of the country.

Ms. Klass has written essays for many publications, including Foreign Affairs, The New York Times, Asia and Les Nouvelles d'Afghanistan, as well as contributing the entire section on Afghanistan for the New International Illustrated Encyclopedia of Art. She has lectured widely in the United States and Europe. Her encyclopedic knowledge of the ethnography, political history, military history, art and culture of the Near East and central Asia was unparalleled.

She was director of the Afghanistan Information Center at Freedom House during the 1980s, writing widely and providing expertise to the press, media, branches of the U.S. and other governments, and a variety of related charitable and activist organizations. She was a founder and vice president of the Afghanistan Relief Committee, which provided humanitarian aid to Afghan citizens following the Soviet invasion in 1979. She served as vice president for programs for the Committee from 1980 to 1996.

Ms. Klass' extensive collection of personal papers on Afghanistan and the Soviet invasion was donated to the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, where they provide the corpus of the Rosanne Klass Collection on Afghanistan and the Soviet-Afghan War. This archive was funded with support from longtime friend and colleague Judith Hernstadt. Other papers of Ms. Klass are in the Special Collections Department of the University of Iowa Libraries.

Ms. Klass' tireless efforts on behalf of the people of Afghanistan, performed both in her personal and formal capacities, are an enduring legacy. In 2005, President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan acknowledged Ms. Klass as a great friend to Afghanistan.

She was a friend and adviser to the U.S. United Nations Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick, opera singer Beverly Sills and numerous writers, artists and assorted intellectuals and national security analysts over the years.

Her poetry has been published and anthologized. She edited Spotlight, the magazine of the New York City Opera, and wrote the tribute concert to Normal Treigle upon his death. In 1959, she suggested a ballet theme to George Balanchine that provided the impetus for his "lost" ballet, "The Figure in the Carpet." In addition, Ms. Klass served as an editor at Women's Day magazine, a freelance writer and editor, and an editor of The New York Times Sunday review. She also has been a drama critic and feature writer on a variety of cultural events and performances.

A teacher in the New York City public school system, Ms. Klass also was an accomplished cook, hostess, world traveler, amateur genealogist and real-life "Auntie Mame" to young adults.

Ms. Klass was predeceased by her parents, Raymond and Ann Traxler Klass; and her brother, Philip J. Klass, an aviation journalist and UFO debunker. She was married for 11 years to William K. Archer, an ethnomusicologist. That marriage ended in divorce, and he also predeceased her.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions may be made to the Dorot Organization (www.dorotusa.org).

Ms. Klass will be interred in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. There will be no funeral, but a memorial service will be held in New York City, with details to be announced.