Cass Canfield
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cass Canfield (born April 26, 1897, New York City; died March 27, 1986, New York City) was an American publishing executive who was the longtime president and chairman of Harper & Brothers, later Harper & Row.
Contents |
[edit] Early life
Canfield was the son of wealthy engineer Augustus Cass Canfield and the great-grandson of Presidential candidate Lewis Cass. He attended the Groton School and Harvard University, graduating from Harvard in 1919 after serving as a lieutenant in the United States Army during World War I. He studied at New College, Oxford and trekked through Asia, retracing the route of Marco Polo.
[edit] Publishing career
After returning to New York, he worked as a reporter and advertising salesman for the New York Post. In 1924, he invested in Harper & Brothers and became manager of its London office. He held various executive positions with Harper's in London and New York between then and 1931; among the writers who he signed to Harper's contracts were James Thurber, E. B. White, J. B. Priestley, Harold Laski, John Gunther, and Julian Huxley.
Canfield was president of Harper & Brothers from 1931-45, board chairman from 1945-55, and chairman of the executive committee from 1955-67. From 1967 until his death in 1986, he was House Senior Editor at Harper's. He also wrote seven nonfiction books.
[edit] Government and political activities
During World War II, Canfield took a leave of absence from Harper's to serve as a member of the Board of Economic Warfare, the Foreign Economic Administration, and the United States Office of War Information. He was a founder of the journal Foreign Affairs.
Canfield campaigned for Adlai Stevenson in 1956. He was a strong supporter of birth control, served as chair of the executive committee of Planned Parenthood, and traveled extensively giving speeches and raising money to support the organization.
[edit] Family
Canfield married Katherine Temple Emmet in 1922. They had two sons, Michael Temple Canfield (adopted) (1926-69), the first husband of Lee Radziwill, and Cass Canfield Jr., an executive at Harper & Row. Canfield and Katherine were divorced in 1937, and Canfield married sculptor Jane White, who died in 1984. In 1984, Canfield married Joan H. King.
[edit] Quote
"I am a publisher - a hybrid creature: one part star gazer, one part gambler, one part businessman, one part midwife and three parts optimist."
[edit] Bibliography
- The Publishing Experience (1969)
- Up and Down and Around (1971)
- The Incredible Pierpont Morgan (1974)
- Samuel Adams' Revolution (1976)
- The Iron Will of Jefferson Davis (1978)
- Outrageous Fortunes: The Story of the Medici, the Rothschilds and J. Pierpont Morgan (1981)
- The Six (1983)
