Ian and Betty Ballantine Books and Business Records, 1935-1994, bulk 1945-1973
Summary Information
Abstract
At a Glance
- Call No.:
- MS#1600
- Bib ID:
- 13511438 View CLIO record
- Creator(s):
- Ballantine, Betty; Ballantine, Ian
- Repository:
- Rare Book and Manuscript Library
- Physical Description:
- 84 Linear Feet (67 record storage cartons; 1 manuscript box; 1 folder in map case)
- Language(s):
- English .
- Access:
- You will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account.
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Student papers in Box 3 are restricted for 75 years from date of creation.
This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.
Description
Scope and Contents
The Ian and Betty Ballantine Books and Business Records document the Ballantines' work in publishing from the 1940s through the 1980s. The collection includes five boxes of administrative documents from Penguin Books USA, Bantam Books, Ballantine Books and Peacock Books. Administrative documents cover the management of these presses as well as the editorial, sales, inventorying, and advertising processes. In addition, it includes 59 boxes which contain the editorial libraries of Penguin Books USA, Bantam Books, and Ballantine Books. These libraries are made up of nearly complete print runs of Penguin Books, Pelican Books, Bantam Books, and Ballantine Books, dating from 1935-1990.
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Series I: Business Records, 1940-1994
Series I contains Ian and Betty Ballantine's business records from their work in publishing at four different presses: Penguin Books, Bantam Books, Ballantine Books, and Peacock Books. However, the bulk of the records are from Bantam and Ballantine. They cover a range of functions including order lists and inventories, book reports, financial documents, and meeting minutes. The series also includes Ian Ballantine's files from when he taught a sociology course about the book business at Columbia in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
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Series II consists of nearly complete runs of paperbacks printed by Penguin Books (both Penguin UK and Penguin USA) Pelican Books, Bantam Books, and Ballantine Books between 1935 and 1974. A small amount of books printed in the 1980s and 1990s, primarily by Bantam Books, are also included. These books appear to have been the editorial libraries of their respective publishing houses, though a few have markings from booksellers.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in two series. Series I is arranged in chronological order. Series II is arranged by the ID number assigned to each book by its publisher.
- Series I: Business Records, 1940-1994
- Subseries I.1: Bantam Books, 1940-1952
- Subseries I.2: Ballantine Books, 1952-1974
- Subseries I.3: Other Ballantine Presses, 1943-1994
- Subseries I.4: Columbia Course, 1947-1952
- Series II: Books, 1935-1990
- Series II.1: Penguin Books, 1935-1960
- Subseries II.2: Pelican Books, 1937-1961
- Subseries II.3: Bantam Books, 1945-1990
- Subseries II.4: Ballantine Books, 1952-1974
- Series III: Additions to the Collection
Using the Collection
Conditions Governing Access
Rbml Advance Appointment
Student papers in Box 3 are restricted for 75 years from date of creation.
This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.
Conditions Governing Use
Reproductions may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
Preferred Citation
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Ian and Betty Ballantine Books and Business Records; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library.
Related Material
Sidney Kramer Papers and Library, MS#1841: Sidney Kramer was an editor who worked with Ian Ballantine as an original director of Ballantine and Co. and then of Bantam Books.
Accruals
Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Betty Ballantine, 2011.
About the Finding Aid / Processing Information
Columbia University Libraries, Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Celeste Brewer and Rachel Klepper. Finding aid written by Celeste Brewer and Rachel Klepper in November 2018.
The business records were kept in the order that they were received. Materials that were in binders were removed and foldered, and original titles were retained. Two folders that did not fit in record cartons were moved to Box 6, a manuscript box. Folder 1 was originally in box 1 and folder 2 was originally in Box 4. Brittle pages were photocopied. Books were retained in the physical order that they were received. 22 books were discarded due to mold damage. A list of these discarded books is available upon request.
Revision Description
2018-11-09 XML document instance created by Celeste Brewer.
2019-05-20 EAD was imported spring 2019 as part of the ArchivesSpace Phase II migration.
Biography of Ian and Betty Ballantine
Ian (1916-1995) and Betty Ballantine (1919-2019) were book publishers who contributed to the growth of paperback book sales in the United States. The Ballantines began working for Penguin Books in 1939, opening up an American branch of the United Kingdom-based company. During World War II, paperback books became more popular after their distribution to soldiers in Europe. In 1945, the Ballantines helped found Bantam Books with Walter Pitkin and Sidney Kramer, and Ian became its first president. Bantam mostly sold paperback reprints of books previously published in hardcover. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Ian also taught courses on the business of book publishing in the Sociology department of Columbia University's School of General Studies. In 1952, amidst tension between Ian Ballantine and other managers and an inquiry into his leadership, Ian and Betty Ballantine left Bantam to found Ballantine Books. Ballantine was an innovative press that published paperback originals, specializing in science fiction, fantasy, westerns, and mystery novels. In 1973, Random House purchased Ballantine Books, and Ian and Betty Ballantine became freelance consulting editors and publishers.
Subject Headings
The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches for other collections at Columbia University, through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, and through ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.
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