Workman Publishing Company founder, Peter Workman, 74, died of cancer on Sunday, April 7 at his home in New York. As noted in the recent announcement of management change in the running of Workman Publishing, he had suffered from the disease since last fall.
In addition to serving as president and ceo of the publishing company, Workman was chairman of the board of governors of Yale University Press and served on the boards of the Goddard-Riverside Community Center and Prep-for-Prep, and he was a member of the Publishing Committee of UJA-Federation of New York. As a company announcement recounts: “He was a passionate golfer and skier and a keen poker player, and he took great pleasure in the company of friends, colleagues, and family. Born in Great Neck, Long Island, on October 19, 1938, to Jeanette and Bernard Workman, Peter graduated from Deerfield Academy and Yale University. After a stint in the sales department of Dell Publishing, he founded Workman Publishing Company as a book packager in 1967, and within two years published its inaugural list leading with Richard Hittleman’s Yoga 28-Day Exercise Plan, a title that is still in print.” They add: “Peter was moved by the beauty and expanse of nature—Yosemite, Zermatt, Patagonia, the heaths of Scotland. He was a man driven by big, innovative thoughts. And yet, when it came to bookmaking, he paid attention to the smallest detail: the size of a folio, the use of an ampersand, the quality of paper. A visionary, an inspirational leader, and true friend, Peter will be deeply missed.”
The family says that a memorial service will be planned for a future date, to be announced at another time. Anyone wishing to honor Peter is asked to consider making a donation in his name to the Goddard Riverside Community Center.