Nobel prize winners and stocking fillers – 65 years in the murky waters of London publishing

Ernest Hecht set up Souvenir Press from his bedroom in 1951. Now, following the death of Lord Weidenfeld, he is the last of the group of remarkable Jewish émigrés who transformed postwar British publishingA 65th birthday is a milestone but – now the official retirement age has been abolished – not that big a deal. A medium to large company celebrating 65 years in business is just looking for cheap publicity. But a one-man band of a company that has lasted 65 years? It’s a business in which it’s now thought only sprawling megacorps can possibly survive.And yet, still swimming merrily in the murky waters of London publishing, there amid the whales, sharks and giant squid, is this totally improbable tiddler: Souvenir Press, founded in 1951 by 21-year-old Ernest Hecht in his bedroom in Bayswater, London; still run in 2016 by 86-year-old Ernest Hecht OBE from his charmingly dotty HQ opposite the British Museum, where it has been for the past 42 years. It is an extraordinary story, to put it mildly. Related: Jewish community mark 75th anniversary of Kindertransport Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #lord weidenfeld #ernest hecht #british museum #extraordinary story

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Data Shot: Bonnier Led Ad Page Growth Among Six Major Publishers in 1Q

Bonnier showed the biggest jump in ad pages (up 19 percent) while Meredith showed the largest drop in ad pages (down 10 percent) among six major publishers in the first quarter of 2011, according to data from MagazineRadar. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AOL Outlines How New AOL Advertising.com Group Will Serve Publishers

In May, AOL launched the AOL Advertising.com Group, a b-to-b advertising division focused on serving publishers. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Metamarkets Raises $6 Million To Help Big Web Publishers Corral Big Data

A ad tech startup that promises to help Web publishers make sense of all the data their ad sales generate. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers Starting to Name-Check iTunes "Top Grossing Apps"

From Yahoo's The Cutline: At a panel during the TechCrunch conference in New York last week, Greg Clayman, publisher of News Corp.'s Daily iPad publication, said the application had "almost a million downloads" since its launch in February. "This puts us in the large pantheon of large apps,"... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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2011 U.S. Newspaper Publishing Industry - Jobs & Wages Report

Research and Markets report features 2011 current and 2012 forecast estimates on the median wages and salaries nationally and for all 50 U.S. States. Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"Democratic" publishing venture launched at Hay

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Sun, 29/05/2011 - 12:00 A publishing platform which allows readers to choose what should be published has been launched, supported by Faber and created by "QI" writers John Mitchinson and Justin Pollard, and Crap Towns author Dan Kieran.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's publishers welcome Waterstone's sale

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 27/05/2011 - 12:26 Children's publishers have welcomed the acquisition of Waterstone's by Russian businessman Alexander Mamut. Francesca Dow, m.d. of Penguin Children's Books, said: "The Waterstone's takeover is good news for children's... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Chiki Sarkar appointed Penguin India publisher

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 27/05/2011 - 10:18 Chiki Sarkar, former editor-in-chief of Random House India, has been appointed publisher of Penguin India. Chiki had worked at Random House India since 2006, working with authors including Anita Desai, Salman Rushdie and... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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B-to-B Publishers Say E-Media, Sales Expenses To Increase the Most in 2011

Spending on e-media infrastructure increased for both large and small b-to-b publishers in 2010 and will again in 2011, according to respondents to the 2011 FOLIO B-to-B CEO Survey. Larger publishers expect operating expenses to jump 6 percent in e-media, while smaller publishers expect a 5... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookshop owners "earn £22,000 per year"

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 25/05/2011 - 14:13 Independent bookshop owners paid themselves an average wage of £22,200 in 2010, according to a new survey. Figures revealed that the average sales of those bookshops which took part in last year’s Bookseller Fitness Programme... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's Publishing Plans Cause Rivals Some Unease

Earlier in the week, Amazon announced that it was hiring Laurence Kirshbaum, the former CEO of Time Warner Book Group, to head a new publishing imprint. This seems like an odd time for Amazon to be making its mark on the pubishing industry: book sales are down, major book chains like Borders are... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2011-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HC to publish final Michael Crichton title this November

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 24/05/2011 - 09:00 HarperCollins will publish this November the novel Michael Crichton was working on when he died in 2008. Described as a "high-concept thriller in the vein of Jurassic Park", Micro is co-written by Richard Preston. It follows a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pan Mac acquires self-publishing star Hocking

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 24/05/2011 - 09:38 Pan Macmillan has bought UK and Commonwealth rights (including ebooks) to seven books by self-published US sensation Amanda Hocking. Julie Crisp, editorial director at Tor, bought the rights from St Martin's Press in the United... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers Fight to Control Consumer Data They Barely Use

The sticking point in publishers’ negotiations with Apple to sell magazines on the iPad was over who would control the customer data. Publishers said they needed it to renew and cross-sell buyers of their digital content. Apple didn’t want to give it up. But the big irony in all this back and... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers "celebrating" after Waterstone's takeover

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Mon, 23/05/2011 - 09:40 The takeover of Waterstone's by Alexander Mamut is cause for celebration among the publishing industry, Faber c.e.o. Stephen Page has said. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Forna wins Commonwealth Writers Prize

Publication Date: Mon, 23/05/2011 - 12:15 Aminatta Forna has won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2011 Best Book for her novel The Memory of Love (Bloomsbury). The judges described the novel as "a bold, deeply moving and accomplished novel which confirms her place among the most talented writers... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers begin "buddying" schemes

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 20/05/2011 - 08:34 Random House and Bloomsbury have begun "buddying" programmes to support their local libraries and library authorities. More than 20 Random House staff have volunteered to be part of a pilot scheme pioneered by deputy group... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Independent Booksellers Book Prize shortlists unveiled

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 19/05/2011 - 12:19 Readers are being called to cast their vote for the Independent Booksellers’ Book Prize winner, after the shortlist was announced today. The annual award, which recognises works of fiction for adults and children, asks members... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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French poll says publishers less reliable than a decade ago

Written By: Barbara Casassus Publication Date: Thu, 19/05/2011 - 09:58 Fewer French booksellers think publishers are "serious and reliable" than they did 10 years ago, a survey has revealed. Among 430 representative outlets surveyed in a poll taken for French trade weekly Livres Hebdo between... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The late Tom Bingham awarded Orwell Prize

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Wed, 18/05/2011 - 09:18 The late lord chief justice Tom Bingham has been awarded the Orwell Prize for political writing for his book The Rule of Law (Penguin). Bingham, a former master of the rolls, lord chief justice, and senior law lord, died in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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