Pan Books
 | |
| Parent company | Macmillan Publishers |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1944 |
| Founder | Alan Bott |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters location | Clerkenwell,London[1] |
| Distribution | Macmillan Distribution(UK) Alliance Distribution Services(Australia)[2] self-distributed (South Africa, India)[3] Trafalgar Square Publishing(United States)[4] |
| Publication types | Books |
| Official website | www |
Pan Booksis a publishingimprintthat first became active in the 1940s and is now part of the British-basedMacmillan Publishers,owned by theGeorg von Holtzbrinck Publishing GroupofGermany.
Pan Books began as an independent publisher, established in 1944 byAlan Bott,previously known for his memoirs of his experiences as a flying ace in the First World War.[6]The Pan Books logo, showing the ancient Greek godPanplaying pan-pipes, was designed byMervyn Peake.The later version was by Edward Young who also designed the logo for Penguin.
A few years after it was founded, Pan Books was bought out by a consortium of several publishing houses, including Macmillan,Collins,Heinemann,and briefly,Hodder & Stoughton.It became wholly owned by Macmillan in 1987.[7]
Pan specialised in publishing paperback fiction and, along withPenguin Books,was one of the first popular publishers of this format in the UK. Many popular authors saw their works given paperback publication through Pan, includingIan Fleming,whoseJames Bondseries first appeared in paperback in the UK as Pan titles. So too didLeslie Charteris's books aboutThe Saint,Peter O'Donnell'sModesty Blaise,and novels byEdgar Wallace,Agatha Christie,Erle Stanley Gardner,Peter Cheyney,Georgette Heyer,Neville Shute,John Steinbeck,Josephine TeyandArthur Upfield.Pan also published paperback editions of works by classic authors such asJane AustenandCharles Dickens.[8]Another notable title published by Pan wasThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the GalaxybyDouglas Adams.
During the 1950s and 60s, Pan Books editions were noted for their colourful covers, which have made many of them collectables, particularly the Fleming and Charteris novels.[8]Around 2,000 different pieces of cover artwork were commissioned by Pan between 1955 and 1965. Many of these artists remain largely unknown today. They include Rex Archer (1928–?), SR Boldero (1898–1987),Roger Hall,Edward Mortelmans,John Pollack (1918–1985),Sam Peffer,Dave Taylor (1921–1985), and Carl Wilton.[9]
The Pan imprint continues to publish a broad list of popular fiction and nonfiction. Among its current authors areKen Follett,Kate Morton,Jeffrey Archer,Peter James,David Baldacci,Joanna Trollope,C.J. Sansom,Scott Turow,andDanielle Steel.[7]
References[edit]
- ^"Pan Mac in 2019 move to Clerkenwell | The Bookseller".Retrieved21 July2019.
- ^"Contact us".Pan Macmillan Australia.Retrieved27 December2017.
- ^"Pan Macmillan India".Retrieved27 December2017.
- ^"Pan Macmillan | Independent Publishers Group".Retrieved27 December2017.
- ^The Art of Sam Peffer,mi6-hq. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
- ^Alan Bott MC 1893–1952Archived2016-03-03 at theWayback Machine,tikit.net. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
- ^ab"Pan Macmillan Imprint History".Archived fromthe originalon 9 July 2011.
- ^abThe First Twenty Five Years of PAN Paperback Books: 1945 to 1970,tikit.net. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
- ^Larkin, Colin.Cover Me. The Vintage Art of Pan Books: 1950–1965(2020)
External links[edit]
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