David McKay was a Scottish American

Scottish American

Scottish Americans or Scots Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Scotland. Scottish Americans are closely related to Scots-Irish Americans, descendants of Ulster Scots, and communities emphasize and celebrate a common heritage...

 publisher, head of David McKay Publications

David McKay Publications

David McKay Publications was an American book publisher which also published some of the first comic books, including the long-running titles Ace Comics, King Comics, and Magic Comics; as well as collections of such popular comic strips as Blondie, Dick Tracy, and Mandrake the Magician...

, which published books of all kinds, including early examples of comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

s.

Early life

McKay was born in Dysart, Scotland, on June 24, 1860. At the age of 11, he came to the United States with his parents. At the age of 13, he began working for J. B. Lippincott & Co., learning the bookselling trade.

Rees Welsh

By the age of 21, McKay was placed in charge of the miscellaneous catalog of books by publisher Rees Welsh. One year later, upon hearing McKay had been offered a position with a rival publisher, Welsh asked McKay to take the helm, offering to sell the entire publishing firm to him. McKay’s notoriety as a publisher actually began while still working for Rees Welsh & Co., by bringing out Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman

Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...

’s Leaves of Grass

Leaves of Grass

Leaves of Grass is a poetry collection by the American poet Walt Whitman . Though the first edition was published in 1855, Whitman spent his entire life writing Leaves of Grass, revising it in several editions until his death...

when another publisher, James R. Osgood & Co.

James R. Osgood

James R. Osgood was an American publisher probably best known for his partnership with Mark Twain and his involvement with the publishing company that would become Houghton Mifflin.-Life and work:...

, had thrown it out because of threatened legal action by the attorney-general of Massachusetts for its “alleged immorality.”

David McKay Publications

In September 1882, with $500 of his own money and $2,500 in borrowed money and notes, McKay began his own publishing company on South 9th Street in Philadelphia.

At age 25, McKay published the first collected set of Shakespeare’s works in the United States. By December 1905, McKay had absorbed many rival publishing houses into his own, and was publishing books in almost every popular genre of the time, including world famous literature, textbooks and a number of children’s books.

The company also published Ace Comics

Ace Comics

Ace Comics was a comic book series published by David McKay Publications between 1937 and 1949 — starting just before the Golden Age era of comics...

, Blondie

Blondie (comic strip)

Blondie is an American comic strip created by cartoonist Chic Young. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, the strip has been published in newspapers since September 8, 1930...

 Comics, Dick Tracy

Dick Tracy

Dick Tracy is a comic strip featuring Dick Tracy, a hard-hitting, fast-shooting and intelligent police detective. Created by Chester Gould, the strip made its debut on October 4, 1931, in the Detroit Mirror. It was distributed by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate...

, Mandrake the Magician

Mandrake the Magician

Mandrake the Magician is a syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk , which began June 11, 1934. Phil Davis soon took over as the strip's illustrator, while Falk continued to script. The strip was distributed by King Features Syndicate.Davis worked on the strip until his death in 1964,...

(1938), and several other titles.

Personal life

McKay’s family included a wife, one daughter and four sons. His son Alexander would follow in his father’s shoes by taking over the house to go on to publish Walt Disney

Walt Disney

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...

’s first Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse (comics)

Mickey Mouse is a comic book series that has a long-running history, first appearing in 1941 as part of the Four Color one-shot series...

comics, the Blondie and Dagwood

Blondie (comic strip)

Blondie is an American comic strip created by cartoonist Chic Young. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, the strip has been published in newspapers since September 8, 1930...

comic series, and numerous other notable works.