Richard Seaver
Encyclopedia
Richard Woodward Seaver was an American translator, editor and publisher. Seaver was instrumental in defying censorship, to bring to light works by authors such as Samuel Beckett
, Jean Genet
, Henry Miller
, William S. Burroughs
, Hubert Selby, Eugene Ionesco
, E.M. Cioran, D.H. Lawrence, Jack Kerouac
, Harold Pinter
and the Marquis de Sade. While a Fulbright scholar in Paris
, writing his thesis on James Joyce
at the Sorbonne in the early 1950s, he co-founded the English-language literary quarterly, Merlin
, which published early works by Eugène Ionesco
and Jean Genet
. In 1952 Mr. Seaver wrote an essay lauding the work of the then little-known novelist Samuel Beckett
. This essay became instrumental in Beckett’s finding an American publisher and champion.
He and his wife of 55 years Jeannette ran Arcade Publishing
from 1988 until his death.
Seaver was born in Watertown, Connecticut
, on December 31, 1926. He graduated from the University of North Carolina
. After graduation he taught high school
briefly before he traveled abroad to Paris
and the Sorbonne
while writing his dissertation on James Joyce
. While abroad he met Jeannette Medina who he married in 1953. Before returning to the United States
and settling in New York
with his wife he spent two years in the United States Navy
.
In 1959 Seaver went to work for Grove Press
where he eventually rose to the position of editor in chief. In 1968, he signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War. In 1971 he left Grove Press and went to work for Viking Press
. After Viking he became the president and publisher of Holt, Rinehart and Winston
’s trade division and then started his own company Arcade Publishing.
In his memoir, Mr. Seaver recalls the moment in 1952, when he wrote a first, and seminal essay extolling the work of then-unknown Samuel Beckett. He was 25 and had just finished reading the novels “Molloy” and “Malone Dies,” which he believed were masterpieces. “How do you write a meaningful comment on such rich, complex, still undiscovered work, without making a critical fool of yourself?” he wrote. “So make a fool of yourself.”
“Out, damned modesty,” he added. “If conviction means anything, then write from the heart. Slightly less tentatively, I wrote: ‘Samuel Beckett, an Irish writer long established in France, has recently published two novels which, although they defy all commentary, merit the attention of anyone interested in this century’s literature.’
He died on January 5, 2009 in Manhattan, New York after a heart attack.
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
, Jean Genet
Jean Genet
Jean Genet was a prominent and controversial French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. Early in his life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but later took to writing...
, Henry Miller
Henry Miller
Henry Valentine Miller was an American novelist and painter. He was known for breaking with existing literary forms and developing a new sort of 'novel' that is a mixture of novel, autobiography, social criticism, philosophical reflection, surrealist free association, and mysticism, one that is...
, William S. Burroughs
William S. Burroughs
William Seward Burroughs II was an American novelist, poet, essayist and spoken word performer. A primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodernist author, he is considered to be "one of the most politically trenchant, culturally influential, and innovative artists of the 20th...
, Hubert Selby, Eugene Ionesco
Eugène Ionesco
Eugène Ionesco was a Romanian and French playwright and dramatist, and one of the foremost playwrights of the Theatre of the Absurd...
, E.M. Cioran, D.H. Lawrence, Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
, Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
and the Marquis de Sade. While a Fulbright scholar in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, writing his thesis on James Joyce
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
at the Sorbonne in the early 1950s, he co-founded the English-language literary quarterly, Merlin
Merlin (literary magazine)
Merlin was an avant-garde British literary magazine. Seven issues were released between 1952 and 1954. It published the work of Samuel Beckett, Henry Miller, Christopher Logue, Pablo Neruda, and Jean-Paul Sartre, among others....
, which published early works by Eugène Ionesco
Eugène Ionesco
Eugène Ionesco was a Romanian and French playwright and dramatist, and one of the foremost playwrights of the Theatre of the Absurd...
and Jean Genet
Jean Genet
Jean Genet was a prominent and controversial French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. Early in his life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but later took to writing...
. In 1952 Mr. Seaver wrote an essay lauding the work of the then little-known novelist Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
. This essay became instrumental in Beckett’s finding an American publisher and champion.
He and his wife of 55 years Jeannette ran Arcade Publishing
Arcade Publishing
Arcade Publishing is an independent trade publishing company that started in 1988 in New York, USA. They are publishers of American and world fiction and non-fiction...
from 1988 until his death.
Seaver was born in Watertown, Connecticut
Watertown, Connecticut
Watertown is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 21,661 at the 2000 census. The zip code for Watertown is 06795. It is a suburb of Waterbury. It borders the towns of Woodbury, Middlebury, Litchfield, Plymouth, Bethlehem, and Thomaston.-Founding History:More...
, on December 31, 1926. He graduated from the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
. After graduation he taught high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
briefly before he traveled abroad to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
while writing his dissertation on James Joyce
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
. While abroad he met Jeannette Medina who he married in 1953. Before returning to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and settling in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
with his wife he spent two years in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
.
In 1959 Seaver went to work for Grove Press
Grove Press
Grove Press is an American publishing imprint that was founded in 1951. Imprints include: Black Cat, Evergreen, Venus Library, Zebra. Barney Rosset purchased the company in 1951 and turned it into an alternative book press in the United States. The Atlantic Monthly Press, under the aegis of its...
where he eventually rose to the position of editor in chief. In 1968, he signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War. In 1971 he left Grove Press and went to work for Viking Press
Viking Press
Viking Press is an American publishing company owned by the Penguin Group, which has owned the company since 1975. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim...
. After Viking he became the president and publisher of Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt McDougal is an American publishing company, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, that specializes in textbooks for use in secondary schools. Holt, Rinehart and Winston was a division of Harcourt Education...
’s trade division and then started his own company Arcade Publishing.
In his memoir, Mr. Seaver recalls the moment in 1952, when he wrote a first, and seminal essay extolling the work of then-unknown Samuel Beckett. He was 25 and had just finished reading the novels “Molloy” and “Malone Dies,” which he believed were masterpieces. “How do you write a meaningful comment on such rich, complex, still undiscovered work, without making a critical fool of yourself?” he wrote. “So make a fool of yourself.”
“Out, damned modesty,” he added. “If conviction means anything, then write from the heart. Slightly less tentatively, I wrote: ‘Samuel Beckett, an Irish writer long established in France, has recently published two novels which, although they defy all commentary, merit the attention of anyone interested in this century’s literature.’
He died on January 5, 2009 in Manhattan, New York after a heart attack.
External links
- Richard Seaver, Publisher, Dies at 82 (The New York Times)
- Censorship-Fighting Editor Richard Seaver (The Washington Post)
- Richard Seaver: The Terror of the Words (PEN American Center)
- Richard Seaver, éditeur de la Beat Generation (Le Monde)
- Rebel Rebel
- Apocolypse Now?
- Richard Seaver: A Literary man of Great Taste by novelist John Irving (NPR)
- Richard Seaver: Publisher who fought against prudery and censorship (The Independent, UK)
- Richard Seaver: A Titan of Publishing