Here is an excerpt from my mid-December post The Problem with Commission Reports Becoming Bestsellers"I contacted Random House , the parent company of Vintage who published the ISG [Iraq Study Group] report, to get an idea of exactly what "portion" of the proceeds they will be donating. Their response was troubling. "This is as detailed information, as we are releasing. A portion of the proceeds from the purchase of the book will be donated to the National Military Family Association. NMFA...".Today Forbes published an article by Eugenia Levenson on publishing houses profiting on government reports entitled "Publishing' Easy Money". Levenson...
The Grolier Club: An Early American Book Club
The Grolier Club is arguably the most famous book club in our country.Founded in 1884 by book lovers for "the literary study and promotion of the arts pertaining to the production of the book." The club got its name from Jean Grolier de Servières, a bibliophile of the highest order who lived during the Renaissance.The Grolier Club's history is rich. It has always exhibited books from the finest collections and has published over 200 books and exhibition catalogs each produced by the finest bookmakers and typographers of the day. It's renowned library contains almost 100,000 books.The other major contribution from...
More on the Digital Battle for Our Literary Heritage
A follow up to my post of a couple of days ago.The San Francisco Chronicle ran this story last Wednesday. Smithsonian and Corbis Enter Media Deal. "Under the licensing agreement, Corbis will provide hundreds of images from the Smithsonian museums, including archival photos and images of cultural objects, paintings, sculptures, aircraft and space vehicles."The images will then be licensed for a fee.In 1846 President James K. Polk established the Smithsonian Institution as a trust to be administered by a Board of Regents and a Secretary of the Smithsonian The current Board of Regents approved the deal with Corbis last year.Here...
The Limit of Wikipedia
Make no mistake Wikipedia is a tremendous digital asset to our culture. It is a breath of open access in an increasingly restrictive society. Its born of the seeds of true democracy and freedom of expression. I have referenced information found there many times in my blog posts.Unfortunately, open access has an Achilles heel. The very openness that makes Wikipedia possible is also the thorn which will keep it from becoming the dictionary of the 21st Century.There is an article at Inside Higher Ed entitled "A Stand Against Wikipedia" which addresses the challenge facing academia. It talks about the history...
Become A Rare Bookseller
Doesn't get any better than this. Another biblio-classic via YouTube.A public service type instructional video from a series called "The Significant Occupation Series" circa late 1950's.A 2+ minute commercial promoting the joys of rare bookselling.Thanks to Biblio-Technician for the lead