William Targ
Encyclopedia
William Targ was a successful book editor
, well respected in the field of commercial publishing
. He is perhaps best known for publishing Mario Puzo
's novel
The Godfather
while editor in chief of G. P. Putnam's Sons
.
Targ was born in Chicago
to Russian immigrants. His name was originally William Torgownik. A high-school dropout with a passion for books and letterpress printing
, Targ took a job as an office boy at Macmillan Publishers
when he was 18. He opened his own bookstore at 22 in North Clark Street, Chicago
. From 1942 to 1964 Targ worked as an editor for the World Publishing Company, eventually becoming editor-in-chief. He then moved to G.P. Putnam's Sons where, in 1968, he bought Puzo's novel for a $5000 advance. According to the New York Times, "'The Godfather' turned out to be the most profitable single novel ever published by Putnam's and the paperback
rights were sold for more than $400,000."
Outside of the commercial realm, Targ was committed to the art of bookmanship and the ideals of the private press
. After retiring from Putnam in 1978, he founded Targ Editions, a one-man operation he ran from his home in Greenwich Village
. Targ sought to publish works by contemporary writers that had not been previously produced in book form. The twenty-five Targ Editions include works by Henry Roth
, John Updike
, Saul Bellow
, Tennessee Williams
, Isaac Asimov
, Ray Bradbury
, and Norman Mailer
—each book a unique volume. As Targ wrote for his Targ Editions checklist: "Each of these books is individually designed (no two formats are alike) and they are produced by letter press and are hand-bound. The various printing papers are of high quality, and enduring—mainly of rag, and deckle-edged. The bindings are of pictorial or decorated boards, and or cloth over boards. Each book is signed by its author. The editions are limited to between 150 and 350 copies each." Copies of most of the Targ Editions volumes are housed in the Fales Library and Special Collections at New York University
's (NYU) Bobst Library.
In his own Targ Editions volume, Abacus Now, William Targ wrote: "Print can be as beautiful as music; it has the power to move, it is as volatile as stage magic. As a typophile and bookman, now on my own, I look more closely into the genius and works of the men and women who enriched our lives with beautiful books. I observe closely the contemporary typographic scene, the people engaged with the magical 26 letters by which we live... I don't think the private press printer will save the world; but I think that if we are seeking the pure of heart and a wholesome commitment, such a person may be found more readily beside a hand press than, say, in an advertising agency
or in the House of Representatives
—or in City Hall
." William Targ died on July 22, 1999, at the age of 92, in his Manhattan
home. He was survived by his wife, Roslyn, of Manhattan, a literary agent
; a son, Russell
, of Palo Alto, California
; two grandchildren, one of whom was Elisabeth Targ
, and four great-grandchildren.
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
, well respected in the field of commercial publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
. He is perhaps best known for publishing Mario Puzo
Mario Puzo
Mario Gianluigi Puzo was an American author and screenwriter, known for his novels about the Mafia, including The Godfather , which he later co-adapted into a film by Francis Ford Coppola...
's novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
The Godfather
The Godfather
The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
while editor in chief of G. P. Putnam's Sons
G. P. Putnam's Sons
G. P. Putnam's Sons was a major United States book publisher based in New York City, New York. Since 1996, it has been an imprint of the Penguin Group.-History:...
.
Targ was born in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
to Russian immigrants. His name was originally William Torgownik. A high-school dropout with a passion for books and letterpress printing
Letterpress printing
Letterpress printing is relief printing of text and image using a press with a "type-high bed" printing press and movable type, in which a reversed, raised surface is inked and then pressed into a sheet of paper to obtain a positive right-reading image...
, Targ took a job as an office boy at Macmillan Publishers
Macmillan Publishers
Macmillan Publishers Ltd, also known as The Macmillan Group, is a privately held international publishing company owned by Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. It has offices in 41 countries worldwide and operates in more than thirty others.-History:...
when he was 18. He opened his own bookstore at 22 in North Clark Street, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. From 1942 to 1964 Targ worked as an editor for the World Publishing Company, eventually becoming editor-in-chief. He then moved to G.P. Putnam's Sons where, in 1968, he bought Puzo's novel for a $5000 advance. According to the New York Times, "'The Godfather' turned out to be the most profitable single novel ever published by Putnam's and the paperback
Paperback
Paperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
rights were sold for more than $400,000."
Outside of the commercial realm, Targ was committed to the art of bookmanship and the ideals of the private press
Private press
Private press is a term used in the field of book collecting to describe a printing press operated as an artistic or craft-based endeavor, rather than as a purely commercial venture...
. After retiring from Putnam in 1978, he founded Targ Editions, a one-man operation he ran from his home in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
. Targ sought to publish works by contemporary writers that had not been previously produced in book form. The twenty-five Targ Editions include works by Henry Roth
Henry Roth
Henry Roth was an American novelist and short story writer.-Biography:Roth was born in Tysmenitz near Stanislaviv, Galicia, Austro-Hungary...
, John Updike
John Updike
John Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short story writer, art critic, and literary critic....
, Saul Bellow
Saul Bellow
Saul Bellow was a Canadian-born Jewish American writer. For his literary contributions, Bellow was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Nobel Prize for Literature, and the National Medal of Arts...
, Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
, Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
, Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
, and Norman Mailer
Norman Mailer
Norman Kingsley Mailer was an American novelist, journalist, essayist, poet, playwright, screenwriter, and film director.Along with Truman Capote, Joan Didion, Hunter S...
—each book a unique volume. As Targ wrote for his Targ Editions checklist: "Each of these books is individually designed (no two formats are alike) and they are produced by letter press and are hand-bound. The various printing papers are of high quality, and enduring—mainly of rag, and deckle-edged. The bindings are of pictorial or decorated boards, and or cloth over boards. Each book is signed by its author. The editions are limited to between 150 and 350 copies each." Copies of most of the Targ Editions volumes are housed in the Fales Library and Special Collections at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's (NYU) Bobst Library.
In his own Targ Editions volume, Abacus Now, William Targ wrote: "Print can be as beautiful as music; it has the power to move, it is as volatile as stage magic. As a typophile and bookman, now on my own, I look more closely into the genius and works of the men and women who enriched our lives with beautiful books. I observe closely the contemporary typographic scene, the people engaged with the magical 26 letters by which we live... I don't think the private press printer will save the world; but I think that if we are seeking the pure of heart and a wholesome commitment, such a person may be found more readily beside a hand press than, say, in an advertising agency
Advertising agency
An advertising agency or ad agency is a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients. An ad agency is independent from the client and provides an outside point of view to the effort of selling the client's products or services...
or in the House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
—or in City Hall
City hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall or a municipal building or civic centre, is the chief administrative building of a city...
." William Targ died on July 22, 1999, at the age of 92, in his Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
home. He was survived by his wife, Roslyn, of Manhattan, a literary agent
Literary agent
A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers and film producers and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers...
; a son, Russell
Russell Targ
Russell Targ is an American physicist and author, an ESP researcher, and pioneer in the earliest development of the laser....
, of Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
; two grandchildren, one of whom was Elisabeth Targ
Elisabeth Targ
Elisabeth Fischer Targ was a psychiatrist specializing in psychic phenomena and the role of spirituality in health and healing...
, and four great-grandchildren.
External links
- NYU's Fales Library Guide to the Targ Editions Archive
- Bobcat Use this library search engine to locate copies of Targ Editions volumes.