PEOPLE
Bonnie Ammer has been named to the newly created position of EVP, Publisher at Large, Random House Worldwide, reporting directly to Peter Olson. Her current job as Publisher, Fodor’s Travel Publications, and President, Random House Information Group, will be assumed by David Naggar, who will continue as President, Random House Audio and Diversified Publishing Group. Last week Scott Matthews was named Publisher of Random House Audio and Large Print. He will retain his title of President of Random’s Books on Tape.
Ruth Pomerance, formerly of USAFilms, has become EVP Production and Development for IDT Telecomm-unications, developing animated feature films and direct-to-dvd projects. She will also be starting a special division to publish books that are based on original material in development. She may be reached at Ruth.Pomerance@ corp.idt.net or (973) 438-3094. . . Avalon has hired a new Marketing Director, Sandee Roston, who was most recently at Bloomsbury. She will be based in New York.
In other Random news, Steven Pace, previously Divisional Director, Trade East at Random House, has been named to the new position of VP Director of Retail Sales at Baker & Taylor, in its North Carolina headquarters. Rachel Klayman has gone to Crown as Senior Editor. She was most recently at Free Press. And Jon Ackerman, formerly at Random, has gone to Klutz, managing national accounts.
No news on some of the searches taking place in university presses: Seven months after Bill Strachan left Columbia U. Press (he is now at Hyperion) the search for a new Director is “moving forward but not yet complete,” according to a source involved in the process. And at Harvard Business School Press the search for a successor to Director Carol Franco also continues. Franco will move to the position of Editor-at-Large for the entire HBS Publishing division as soon as a new person is named.
In agency news: October 1st marks the day that a new literary agency, Lippincott McQuilkin & Co, launched. Started by Will Lippincott (who’s keeping his job at Booz Allen part-time) and Rob McQuilkin, the agency is located at 80 Fifth Ave., Suite 1101, NY, NY 10011. Phone number is (212) 337-2045. . . Bob Diforio, Marilyn Allen and Coleen O’Shea are regrouping, with Allen and O’Shea forming the Allen O’Shea Literary Agency. The D4EO Literary Agency will continue under Bob Diforio. . . George Lucas, who recently joined Carlisle & Company, just sold his first book on behalf of Peter Robinson at Curtis Brown, London. Entitled The Rise and Fall of Carthage (by Richard Miles) it went to Wendy Wolff at Viking, for $400k+. Meanwhile, Carlisle & Company has moved its offices to 6 West 18th Street, Twelfth Floor, New York, NY 10011. Agents Christy Fletcher and Emma Parry, who left Carlisle to establish their own agency, Fletcher & Parry, have offices across town, at 121 East 17th Street. . . Wendy Sherman, of the eponymous agency, has a new associate in former Holt colleague Tracy Brown. He will develop and represent his own list of clients under the auspices of the agency. He was most recently Senior Editor at Ballantine. . . And PJ Mark has left IMG to join Collins McCormick as an agent. Word is that Mark Reiter is also leaving IMG, to go to PFD (Peters Fraser & Dunlop), but no announcement has yet been made. In other agency news: Jenny Bent, formerly with Harvey Klinger, Inc., has joined Trident Media Group. . . Tad Floridis has joined Donadio & Olson as an agent. Floridis was VP of Development at Longview Productions and Executive VP at Rightscenter.com. And Anna Stein, formerly of the Wylie Agency, has joined Donadio & Olson, as an Associate.
In Boston: Elizabeth Carduff, formerly Associate Publisher of Perseus, has been named Editorial Manager of Cook’s Illustrated. . . Gary Gentel has been named Corporate VP, Director of Houghton Mifflin’s Sales, Trade & Reference Division. He had been VP of Trade Sales for Scholastic. In other HM-related news, Eric Chinski, most recently Executive Editor at Houghton, has joined Farrar, Straus, also in an Exec. Ed. role.
As reported elsewhere, Mel Parker has left Bookspan, where he was SVP Editorial Director, to pursue publishing opportunities. He may be reached at melpark211@aol.com. Brigitte Weeks has been named SVP and Editor-in-Chief.
In children’s, Elizabeth Law moves to S&S as VP, Associate Publisher of the Books For Young Readers imprint. She had been Associate Publisher at Viking Children’s Books. There are promotions at Knopf & Crown Books For Young Readers imprints, including Nancy Hinkel, who moves from Senior Editor to Publishing Director, Nancy Siscoe, who has been promoted from Executive Editor to Associate Publishing Director, and Michelle Frey, who has been promoted to Senior Editor from Editor. Alix Reid has been promoted to VP Editorial Director and Director of Foreign Acquisitions, of HarperCollins Children’s. And at Penguin’s Philomel Books, Michael Green has been promoted to Associate Publisher, Editorial Director as Pat Gauch steps down from the role of Publisher to become Editor-at-Large. Finally, Gray Peterson has been named VP Sales, Mass Market for Scholastic. He was VP of Sales at AMS’s Dalmatian Press.
OCTOBER EVENTS
The 2003 National Book Festival takes place on Oct. 4, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. between 7th and 14th Streets from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (rain or shine). The third annual Festival is organized and sponsored by the Library of Congress and hosted by Laura Bush and is expected to attract “more than 60,000” people.
George Plimpton, whose obituary found its way into the unlikeliest publications last week, was looking forward to the Paris Review’s 50th anniversary celebrations, centered around a gala fundraising event at Cipriani in New York on October 14th. The event — hosted by Garrison Keillor — will proceed as planned, and now will be held in Plimpton’s honor. Tickets to the benefit are still available, and, according to the PR’s editors, “supporters of the Review and admirers of George Plimpton are encouraged to attend.” All proceeds will benefit The Paris Review Foundation. Contact the Paris Review editorial office for more information: (212) 861-0016.
New York is Cookbook Country takes place from Wednesday, October 15 through Saturday, October 18. The kickoff is a Food Writers Panel at Borders Park Avenue, with Jeffrey Steingarten, Ruth Reichl, and others on Oct. 15. On Oct. 16 a chef’s panel, moderated by Judith Jones, takes place at the NY Public Library. Oct. 17 and 18 are the Guest Chef Dinners around the city, along with cookbook signings. Go to www. nyisbookcountry.org for details.
The Small Press Center presents “An Interview with Jane Friedman” on October 23 from 6 to 7:30 at 20 W. 44. The NYT’s Christopher Lehmann-Haupt will interview the HarperCollins CEO. For details go to www.smallpress.org. Small Press Center and The General Society of Mechanics (where the Small Press Center is located) host a lecture series entitled “Wit’s End on West 44th Street,” beginning October 15. Each lecture costs $15, and the series of 5 costs $60. For details go to www.generalsociety.org.
On October 29-30 WRG, in association with the International Intellectual Property Group, presents “Creating New Markets for Entertainment Copyrights: Generating Revenue with New Forms of Digital Distribution in the Face of Piracy.” It takes place at the Flatotel on West 52nd St. Numerous speakers from music, movies, television, and publishing are represented on panels during the two-day conference. Go to www.worldrg.com/fw306/request.asp for details.
IN MEMORIAM
A memorial service for Peter Schwed, the longtime S&S executive who died earlier in the summer, will be held October 17 at 4 pm at the Century Club.
Donations in memory of Pat Sado, longtime book buyer at Coliseum who died September 19, to the Nathalie Sado Educational Fund, c/o Barbara Passy, East Hampton Business Service, 20 Park Place, East Hampton, N.Y. 11937.
Donations in memory of Miriam Bass, who spent more than 30 years in bookselling — the last ten at NBN — may be made to the National Kidney Foundation at 30 East 33rd St., Suite 1100, New York, New York 10016.
