Obits

The renowned Upper East Side bookstore Kitchen Arts & Letters announced that founder and co-owner Nach Waxman “died suddenly” on Wednesday, August 4. They write: “He built the store into a worldwide haven for people who were serious about food and drink books. He encouraged the best authors, respected the passion and curiosity of cooks and readers at all levels, and never lost a sense of pleasure and wonder at discovering the myriad ways people wrote about cooking, eating, and drinking. All of us who worked with him will miss him deeply. As we carry on the tradition he created, […]

Former Random House and Workman sales exec Michael Rockliff, 76, died on July 29. He began his career at Random House in 1968 and remained there for 38 years. He then worked as director of library sales and marketing at Workman before retiring in 2015. PRH notes, “At sales conferences, Rockliff could be counted on to discuss, with equal passion to the pitches for imminent bestsellers, a book on displaced European Jews or a biography of an obscure but pathfinding musician. Over time, his colleagues began referring to these volumes—many of which went on to win prizes—as ‘Mike Books.’ One […]

Author and longtime leader of Italian publisher Adelphi, Roberto Calasso, 80, died on Wednesday following a long illness. In 2015 he bought back Rizzoli’s majority share in Adelphi, where he worked for almost 60 years, to prevent its sale to Mondadori. Rival publishing house Feltrinelli said, “Roberto Calasso has been and will continue to be a central figure of reference for the Italian and international literary panorama.” In the US, Farrar, Straus will publish Calasso’s new book, The Book of All Books, in November, and his The Tablet of the Destinies will follow in 2022. Calasso’s longtime editor, FSG president Jonathan […]

Literary agent and scout Lynn C. Franklin, 74, died July 19 after a lengthy battle with cancer. After founding her eponymous scouting agency in 1978, she partnered with Todd Siegal to form Franklin & Siegal Associates in 1992. She was also the author of May the Circle Be Unbroken, which looked at adoption from all perspectives and includes an account of her reunion in 1993 with her birth son. The company notes, “Lynn will be remembered as a trailblazing pioneer in the world of international scouting with a strong love of her many friends worldwide.” Information on a memorial service will […]

Co-founder of Andrews McMeel Universal John McMeel, 85, died on July 7. He “never really retired, his wife said. At his death he was the company’s chairman emeritus.” The NYT notes, “Indefatigably sunny, Mr. McMeel had the optimism — and the stamina — of a true salesman.” Company chair Hugh Andrews — son of Kathy Andrews, who died earlier this year — said, “John was one of the most dynamic, energetic, and positive personalities one might ever encounter. His unwavering optimism, enthusiasm, and true passion for life – and most of all, for people – was evident in everything he […]

Founder of Scholastic’s Cartwheel imprint and author Bernette G. Ford, 70, died June 20 of lung cancer. As the NYT notes, she “was a leading advocate of making children’s books more diverse and making sure that people of color had opportunities to write and illustrate them.” Ford joined Scholastic in 1989 and “was among the first Black executives at a major children’s book publisher.” In 2002 she formed Color-Bridge Books, which consulted on and packaged books for children. Wade Hudson of Just Us Books called Ford “an unsung hero in the push to bring more people of color into children’s book […]