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Stoddart Publishing

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stoddart Publishing
Parent companyGeneral Publishing Co.
PredecessorMusson
Founded1984
Defunct2002
Country of originCanada
Key peopleJack Stoddart
Publication typesBooks

Stoddart Publishing was a Canadian book publisher and distributor, owned by Jack Stoddart, which ceased operations in 2002.[1]

History

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In 1967, General Publishing purchased the Musson imprint, based in Canada, from British publisher Hodder & Stoughton. Musson provided publishing services in Canada for other publishing houses, in addition to publishing its own line of Canadian authors. In 1984, Stoddart Publishing became an imprint of General Publishing, taking over the line of Canadian authors from Musson.[2]

In 1995, Stoddart published a book by photographer Jock Carroll, Glenn Gould: Some Portraits of the Artist as a Young Man, being a collection of photographs of the late Canadian pianist, accompanied by captions written by Carroll. The photographs and narrative were based on an interview with and photos taken by Carroll of Glenn Gould in 1956, at the initiative of Gould's agent. Gould had died in 1982. Gould's estate and his personal corporation sued Stoddart and Carroll for misappropriation of personality without consent or compensation. The actions were unsuccessful, based on Gould's unrestricted consent given at the time of the 1956 photo session and interview.[3]

In 2000, Stoddart published Bret "Hitman" Hart — The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be, by Canadian professional wrestler Bret Hart.[4] The autobiography had an initial print run of 150,000 books, far surpassing Stoddart's previous record print of 20,000 for a single book.[4]

In 2002, General Publishing filed for bankruptcy protection. The bankruptcy resulted in the closure of the majority of its corporate subsidiaries, including Stoddart Publishing.[5] At the time that Stoddart ceased operations, it was the publisher of a number of Canadian writers, including Arthur Black, Pierre Berton, Thomas d'Aquino, Rod McQueen, David Foot, David Suzuki, Walter Stewart and Judy Rebick.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Book giant Stoddart files for creditor protection". CBC News. 2002-05-01. Archived from the original on 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2016-01-15.
  2. ^ Eichler, Leah (2002-07-15). "Distribution Winds Down; Musson Unit Folds". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 249, no. 28. Archived from the original on 2022-05-28. Retrieved 2020-04-03.
  3. ^ Gould Estate v Stoddart Publishing Co Ltd, 39 Ontario Reports (3d) 545 (Court of Appeal for Ontario).
  4. ^ a b McEvoy, Dermot (2000-03-20). "Hitting to All Fields". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 246, no. 12. Archived from the original on 2022-05-28. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  5. ^ Eichler, Leah (2002-05-06). "General Publishing Files For Bankruptcy Protection". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 249, no. 18. Archived from the original on 2024-06-03. Retrieved 2016-01-09.