Pollock refused to relocate permanently to protect the Institute’s east-coast power contacts

Evidence

Pollock, who wanted as always to see Horkheimer protected from all distractions from his great theoretical tasks, answered: … I am afraid that even if we should succeed in creating a material basis in Los Angeles, I could not stay there for the duration. If you are not in New York and or Washington, you lose all contacts with the centers of power (inadequate and feeble as these our contacts may be) and you land in utter isolation. I am not so sure whether it would not influence badly your work if you would not know that you have a comparatively good watchdog on the East coast [sic]. — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 1320