Levine, Bernard Robert 1947- (Levi Brunel, Robert K. Thomas)

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Levine, Bernard Robert 1947- (Levi Brunel, Robert K. Thomas)

PERSONAL:

Born July 30, 1947, in Boston, MA; son of Leo (in public health) and Selma (an academic) Levine. Ethnicity: "American." Education: Studied at Commonwealth School, 1960-65; Harvard College, 1965-68.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Eugene, OR. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Knife expert and writer.

WRITINGS:

Knifemakers of Old San Francisco, Badger Books (San Francisco, CA), 1978, 2nd edition, Paladin Press (Boulder, CO), 1998.

The Knife Identification and Value Guide: Thirty-six Installments of Knife World's "Whut Izzit?" Indexed and Cross Referenced, Knife World (Knoxville, TN), 1981.

Levine's Guide to Knives and Their Values, DBI Books (Northbrook, IL), 1985.

Pocketknives: The Collector's Guide to Identifying, Buying, and Enjoying Vintage Pocketknives, Courage Books (Philadelphia, PA), 1993.

Contributor to periodicals, including Knife World, Knives Illustrated, National Knife, Blade, DBI Knives Annual, Gutmann Knife Journal, Knife Tokyo, Knives Australia, PI, Saveur, and Antique Trader. Author's books have been published in Polish, French, and Spanish.

SIDELIGHTS:

Bernard Robert Levine is an American knife expert and writer. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, on July 30, 1947, Levine is the son of a public health worker and an academic. Levine studied at Harvard College from 1965 to 1968. He began researching the history and technology of knives in 1971, publishing his first articles in 1974. He has served as an expert witness on knives since 1979. He contributes to a range of periodicals on knives, including Knife World, Knives Illustrated, National Knife, Blade, DBI Knives Annual, Gutmann Knife Journal, Knife Tokyo, Knives Australia, PI, Saveur, and Antique Trader.

Levine has written a number of books on knives. He published his first book, Knifemakers of Old San Francisco, in 1978. The second edition of this book was published twenty years later in 1998. Both editions look at the historical background of those who made knives in nineteenth-century San Francisco, including famous brands like Will & Finck, Price, Kesmodel, and McConnell. The knives of the region were said to be of the highest quality and aesthetic value in the United States. With the publication of the second volume, more pictures were added and minor corrections and updates were made to the original text. The book also includes a price guide. A contributor to Knife World noted of the original that "the book was superbly written and researched, and opened the eyes of many to the knives of the San Francisco cutlers." The same contributor was pleased to find an updated edition, and paid yet another compliment to the original text, saying that "the information is every bit as sound and valuable as it was in 1978."

In 1981 Levine published The Knife Identification and Value Guide: Thirty-six Installments of Knife World's "Whut Izzit?" Indexed and Cross Referenced. This was followed in 1985 by Levine's Guide to Knives and Their Values, whose fourth edition was released in 1997. It remains a standard reference work in the field. Levine also published Pocketknives: The Collector's Guide to Identifying, Buying, and Enjoying Vintage Pocketknives in 1993.