| Parent company | Carus Publishing Company |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1887 |
| Founder | Edward Hegeler |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Headquarters location | Chicago |
| Distribution | Publishers Group West |
| Publication types | Books |
| Nonfiction topics | philosophy |
| Official website | www.opencourtbooks.com |
The Open Court Publishing Company is a publisher with offices in Chicago and La Salle, Illinois. It is part of the Carus Publishing Company of Peru, Illinois.
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Open Court was founded in 1887 by Edward C. Hegeler of the Matthiessen-Hegeler Zinc Company, at one time the largest producer of zinc in the United States. Hegeler intended for the firm to serve the purpose of discussing religious and psychological problems on the principle that the scientific world-conception should be applied to religion.[1] Its first managing editor was Paul Carus, Hegeler's son-in-law.[2] Open Court specializes in philosophy, science, and religion, and was one of the first academic presses in the country. It was one of the first publishers of inexpensive editions of the classics.[2] It also published the journals Open Court and The Monist—the latter is still being published as of 2010.
One of Open Court Publishing's best-selling series is its semi-annual Popular Culture & Philosophy series, under the editorship of George Reisch. Volumes on the philosophy underpinning such television shows as Seinfeld, The Simpsons and Buffy the Vampire Slayer propelled the series into the limelight, and have invited many imitators since, including The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series[3] and The University Press of Kentucky's own Philosophy titles.[4]