Metin Toker

Journalist and writer (b. 1924, İstanbul – d. 18 June 2002, Ankara). He graduated from Galatasaray High School (1942), Istanbul University, Faculty of Literature, Department of French Language and Literature (1948) and Paris University, Faculty of Political Sciences. He worked for the newspapers Cumhuriyet (1943-51) and Zafer (1949-52) beginning in his student years. He studied political sciences in Paris. When he returned to Turkey, he continued to work as a journalist. Toker, whose voice was heard in the political arena after he married Özden İnönü, (daughter of the second president of the Turkish Republic, İsmet İnönü), started to write about the politics in this period.

He published the review Akis (1954-68). After closing this review, he worked as a columnist in the reviews Hürriyet and Milliyet and he was a contingency senator (senator nominated by the president of the republic) (1977-80) for a while. At the beginning of the 1980’s, he discontinued his political career and started to write about politics again. Toker, a father of three children, received an honorary press card. His last job was writing for his column on the newspaper Milliyet. He died after receiving treatment for one month in intensive care at the İbni Sina Hospital at Ankara University, Faculty of Medicine.

WORKS:

Bir Diktatörün İktidar Yolu (A Dictator’s Path of Power, 1961), İsmet Paşa İle On Yıl (Ten Years with İsmet Paşa, in 3 volumes, 1961-67), Rus Geldi Aşka Rus'un Aşkı Başka (Russians Went into Rapture, a Russian’s Rapture is Different, 1966), Şeyh Sait ve İsyanı (Şeyh Sait and His Revolt, 1968), Avrupa Birşeyler Arıyor (Europe Looks for Something, 1968), Dört Buhranlı Yıl (Three Years of Crisis, 1969), Tek Parti den Çok Partiye (From the Single Party to Many Parties, 1971), Sağda ve Solda Vuruşanlar (Ones That Fight on the Right and the Left, 1971), Türkiye Üzerinde 1945 Kâbusu (1945 Nightmare over Turkey, 1971), Not Defterinden (From My Notebook, 1981), DP'nin Altın Yılları 1950-54 (The Golden Years of the Democrat Party 1950-54, 1990), Demokrasinin İsmet Paşalı Yılları - 3 (The Years of Democracy with İsmet Paşa, 1991).

REFERENCE: Türkiye Ansiklopedisi (C.1, s.87, 1974), Büyük Larousse (C. 19, s. 11581, 1986), Ana Britannica (C. 21, s. 62, 1987), İhsan Işık / Yazarlar Sözlüğü (1990, 1998) - Türkiye Yazarlar Ansiklopedisi (2001, 2004) – Encyclopedia of Turkish Authors (2005) - Resimli ve Metin Örnekli Türkiye Edebiyatçılar ve Kültür Adamları Ansiklopedisi (2006, gen. 2. bas. 2007) - Ünlü Fikir ve Kültür Adamları (Türkiye Ünlüleri Ansiklopedisi, C. 3, 2013) - Encyclopedia of Turkey’s Famous People (2013), Hakkı Devrim / Metin’e saygısızlık edenler (Radikal Kitap, 24.7. 2002), Attila Aşut / 2002 Yılında Kaybettiğimiz Gazeteci Yazar ve Yayıncılar (Çağdaş gazetesi, Haziran 2002, sayı: 54), Cemal Süreya / 99 Yüz (2004).