The Curtis Publishing Company, founded in 1891 in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, became one of the largest and most influential publishers in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

during the early 20th century. The company's publications included the ''

Ladies' Home Journal ''Ladies' Home Journal'' was an American magazine last published by the Meredith Corporation. It was first published on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States. In ...

'' and ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

'', '' The American Home'', ''

Holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or t ...

'', ''

Jack & Jill "Jack and Jill" (sometimes "Jack and Gill", particularly in earlier versions) is a traditional English nursery rhyme. The Roud Folk Song Index classifies the commonest tune and its variations as number 10266, although it has been set to severa ...

'', and '' Country Gentleman''. In the 1940s, Curtis also had a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

imprint, Novelty Press. The company declined in the later 20th century, and its publications were sold or discontinued. It now exists as Curtis Licensing, which licenses images of and from Curtis magazine covers and artwork.

History

The Curtis Publishing Company was founded in 1891 by publisher

Cyrus H. K. Curtis Cyrus Hermann Kotzschmar Curtis (June 18, 1850June 7, 1933) was an American publisher of magazines and newspapers, including the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' and ''The Saturday Evening Post''.Ingham, John N. Biographical Dictionary of American Business ...

, who published the ''People's Ledger'', a news magazine he had begun in Boston in 1872 and moved to Philadelphia in 1876. The city was already a major publishing center. Curtis also established the ''Tribune and Farmer'' in 1879. From a brief women's supplement, his wife,

Louisa Knapp Curtis Louisa Knapp Curtis (October 21, 1851 – February 25, 1910), (also known as Louisa Knapp), was an American columnist and the first editor of the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' from 1883 to 1889. It became one of the most popular magazines published i ...

, developed a

women's section The women's page (sometimes called home page or women's section) of a newspaper was a section devoted to covering news assumed to be of interest to women. Women's pages started out in the 19th century as society pages and eventually morphed into ...

and the ''

'', which she edited from 1883 to 1889. Saturday Evening Post 1916-05-20

Curtis made these publications part of his new company. Curtis bought the ''

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

'' for $1000 in 1897 and developed it as one of the nation's most popular periodicals. The magazine had its roots in Ben Franklin's ''

Pennsylvania Gazette ''The Pennsylvania Gazette'' was one of the United States' most prominent newspapers from 1728 until 1800. In the several years leading up to the American Revolution the paper served as a voice for colonial opposition to British colonial rule, ...

'' and went as far back as 1728. When Curtis took over the Post it had a subscription base of 2,000. The base was over 1 million by 1906 and by 1960 was over six million. Editor

George Horace Lorimer George Horace Lorimer (October 6, 1867 – October 22, 1937) was an American journalist, editor, author and publisher who worked as the editor of ''The Saturday Evening Post'' from 1899 to 1936. During his time as editor, circulation rose from s ...

brought in top writers and illustrators and helped usher in "American's Golden Age of Illustration." Artists such as

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of the country's culture. Rockwell is most famous for the ...

were featured as well as

J. C. Leyendecker Joseph Christian Leyendecker (March 23, 1874 – July 25, 1951) was a German-American illustrator, considered one of the preeminent American illustrators of the early 20th century. He is best known for his poster, book and advertising illustrati ...

John Clymer John Ford Clymer (January 29, 1907 – November 2, 1989) was an American painter and illustrator known for his nature works featuring the American West. Early life and education Born in Ellensburg, Washington, Clymer first studied art throu ...

, Stevan Dohanos, Sarah Stilwell-Weber, and

John La Gatta John La Gatta (May 26, 1894 – January 21, 1977), also spelled LaGatta, was an advertising illustrator active during the first half of the 20th century. Early life John La Gatta was born in Naples, Italy, the son of an educated father and a mot ...

. Curtis Publishing created a

market research Market research is an organized effort to gather information about target markets and customers: know about them, starting with who they are. It is an important component of business strategy and a major factor in maintaining competitiveness. Ma ...

division in 1911 under

Charles Coolidge Parlin Charles Coolidge Parlin (1872 – October 15, 1942) was the American "manager of the division of commercial research of the Curtis Publishing Company" in charge of selling advertising spots in the ''Saturday Evening Post''. He is credited as being ...

. The goal of the division was to understand their customers and was one of the first market research firms. Ladies Home Journal 1900

Curtis reported record earnings of $21 million on $84 million in revenue in 1929. Curtis spun off their market research division,

National Analysts NAXION previously known as National Analysts Worldwide, is an American marketing research company that originally worked as a division of the Curtis Publishing Company. It was founded by Charles Coolidge Parlin in 1911. Donald M. Hobart, future hea ...

, as an independent organization to provide market research services to business and government. Saturday Evening Post 1918-06-01

In 1946, Curtis Publishing launched ''

'' magazine, focusing on travel and photo essays.

1960s and decline of Curtis Publishing

The advent of television in the late 1940s and early 1950s competed for people's attention and eroded the popularity of general-interest periodicals such as the ''Post'' and the ''Journal''. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that both the finance markets and

Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Str ...

were watching Curtis Publishing's efforts to save itself after a financial decline. The reason the ''New York Times'' gave for the attention, "the status of the venerable Curtis empire, the colorful cast of characters directing the comeback attempt, the vast sums of money at stake. In addition, Curtis's troubles seemed to reflect the difficulties encountered by the mass magazines industry as a whole in adjusting to an era dominated by the spiraling growth of television." It wasn't until 1961 and 1962 that the struggle became evident in lost revenue. In 1961 Curtis Publishing president Robert A. MacNeal announced that the company had lost money for the first time in the more than seven decades since its incorporation. The company's financials showed a loss of $4,194,000 on $178.4 million in revenue that year. The next year in 1962, company had total revenues of $149 million and a loss of $18.9 million. Curtis management went to

Serge Semenenko Serge Semenenko (1903 – April 24, 1980) was a Ukraine, Ukrainian-born Cinema of the United States, Hollywood banker in the 1950s and 1960s, representing the First National Bank of Boston. He came to Istanbul from Odesa at the age of 18, studied ...

who had helped the

Hearst Corporation Hearst Communications, Inc., often referred to simply as Hearst, is an American multinational mass media and business information conglomerate based in Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Hearst owns newspapers, magazines, telev ...

to reorganize and Semenenko arranged for a six-bank syndicate to loan $10.5 million to Curtis. Many experts wrote of multiple issues tied to the decline of Curtis. Many of their competitors such as

Time, Inc. Time Inc. was an American worldwide mass media corporation founded on November 28, 1922, by Henry Luce and Briton Hadden and based in New York City. It owned and published over 100 magazine brands, including its namesake ''Time'', ''Sports Illu ...

and

McCall Corporation McCall Corporation was an American publishing company that produced some popular magazines. These included ''Redbook'' for women, ''Bluebook'' for men, ''McCall's'', the '' Saturday Review'', and ''Popular Mechanics''. It also published ''Better L ...

had diversified while Curtis remained focused on their two key periodicals--''Saturday Evening Post'' and ''Ladies' Home Journal''. Their other magazines -- ''Holiday'', ''Jack & Jill'', and ''American'' -- simply could not make up the lost revenue of the main periodicals. The ''Saturday Evening Post'' had been surpassed by ''Life'' magazine as the top mass market periodical in 1942 and then spiraled into a ten-year decline in advertising revenue after World War II. The ''Ladies' Home Journal'' lost its position to McCall's in 1960. Other experts said that the two flagship magazines "simply grew old." Curtis "fell into a formula that tended to attract older readers rather than the young married couples that advertisers wanted to reach." They also stayed away from the more aggressive circulation promotions used by their competitors. Matthew J. Culligan, President of Curtis, cited another financial drag from using its own presses and paper. Culligan said, "This sort of self-sufficiency is fine in good times but it imposes an intolerable burden when business goes bad." They had also failed to follow the model of some of their competitors by diversifying into television, news magazines or book publishing after World War II. Meanwhile the company made editorial and executive changes at their magazine properties.

Ben Hibbs Ben Hibbs (July 23, 1901 – March 30, 1975) was born in Fontana, Kansas and earned an A.B. from the University of Kansas in 1923. In 1942, Hibbs began a twenty-year association with the editorial staff of ''The Saturday Evening Post''.Louis Gal ...

, the editor of ''The Saturday Evening Post'' since 1942, retired, as did Bruce and Beatrice Gould of the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' (editors since 1935). The ''Post'' attempted to reinvent itself with more controversial articles and flashy graphics. Two editors--Robert Fouss (''Saturday Evening Post'') and Curtiss Anderson (''Ladies' Home Journal'') quickly came and went.

Ted Patrick Theodore Roosevelt Patrick, Jr. (born 1930) is an American deprogrammer and author. He is considered to be the "father of deprogramming." Early life Ted Patrick was born in a red-light district of Chattanooga, Tennessee, in which he was surroun ...

, editor of ''Holiday'' magazine, said that Darwinian cost-cutting would be the kiss of death to ''Holiday''. Curtis received another loan of $5.5 million in 1964 to be used to make investments in new editorial properties. Perfect Film loaned the company $5 million in 1968 at the request of Curtis's primary loan holder, First National Bank of Boston, to extend its loans. Curtis sold its Philadelphia headquarters to real estate developer John W. Merriam for $7.3 million to pay off most of the First National loan; it

leased A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industri ...

half of the building back for its operations. In 1968, Curtis Publishing sold the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' and ''The American Home'' to

Downe Communications Downe Communications was a publishing company founded by Edward Downe, Jr. that produced several popular magazines and provided subscription fulfillment services from 1967 to 1978. Downe was a trained journalist who worked at newspapers before bec ...

for $5.4 million in stock; it sold the stock for operating revenue. The list of six million ''Post'' subscribers was sold to ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy ...

'' for cash, a $2.5 million loan, and a contract with Curtis' circulation and printing services subsidiaries. Despite these attempts to revive the ''Saturday Evening Post'', and failing to find a purchaser for the magazine, Curtis Publishing shut it down in 1969. In March 1969, the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction o ...

directed Curtis to offer cash refunds for unfulfilled portions of ''Post'' subscriptions. Perfect Film purchased Curtis Circulation Company that same year. In 1976, The Saturday Evening Post Society was spun off from Curtis to resume publication of its flagship magazine. U.S. Kids was formed, which publishes their portfolio of children's magazines.

21st century

Curtis Publishing of the 21st century is a firm that licenses magazine covers and artwork from their archive of 4,000 images from over 500 artists. As Curtis Licensing, they provide images for advertising as well as to companies creating and selling memorabilia. The

cover paintings and other images have been used for fine art and prints, greeting cards, figurines, and other collectibles.

Properties and subsidiaries

*''

'' *''

'' *'' The American Home'' *''

'' *''

'' *'' The Country Gentleman'' * Novelty Press *

*Royal Electrotype Company

Curtis Center and ''Dream Garden''

In 1910 the company built its headquarters building at the intersection of South Sixth and Walnut streets, about southwest of

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers. The structure forms the centerpi ...

. The offices and press building (as well as the company's

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of citie ...

) was designed by Edgar Viguers Seeler (1867-1929) in the

Beaux Arts style Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorpora ...

. The square-block building stretches from South Sixth to South Seventh Street east to west, and from Sansom Street to Walnut Street north to south. The building was renovated in 1990 by Oldham and Seltz and John Milner Associates."The Curtis Center"
and on USHistory.org The interior of the building features a terraced waterfall and fountain, an atrium with faux-Egyptian palm trees, and the glass-mosaic ''Dream Garden'' (1916) designed by

Maxfield Parrish Maxfield Parrish (July 25, 1870 – March 30, 1966) was an American painter and illustrator active in the first half of the 20th century. He is known for his distinctive saturated hues and idealized neo-classical imagery. His career spann ...

and made by

Louis Tiffany Louis Comfort Tiffany (February 18, 1848 – January 17, 1933) was an American artist and designer who worked in the decorative arts and is best known for his work in stained glass. He is the American artist most associated with the Art NouveauL ...

and Tiffany Studios. The glass-mosaic work was commissioned by

Edward Bok Edward William Bok (born Eduard Willem Gerard Cesar Hidde Bok) (October 9, 1863 – January 9, 1930) was a Dutch-born American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He was editor of the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' for 30 years (1889–1919). He ...

, who was the Senior Editor of the company at the time. It was exhibited at Tiffany Studios in New York City for a month before being installed in the building's lobby, which took six months. The mosaic is made of 100,000 pieces of hand-fixed

Favrile glass Favrile glass is a type of iridescent art glass developed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. He patented this process in 1894 and first produced the glass for manufacture in 1896 in Queens, New York. It differs from most iridescent glasses because the c ...

in 260 different colors."Dream Garden"
on ''USHistory.org'' In 1998, the mosaic was sold to casino owner Steve Wynn, who intended to move it to one of his casinos in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

. This was blocked by local historians and art lovers, who raised $3.5 million to purchase the work and prevent its being moved from the city. The money was provided by the

Pew Charitable Trusts The Pew Charitable Trusts is an independent non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO), founded in 1948. With over 6 billion in assets, its stated mission is to serve the public interest by "improving public policy, informing the public, a ...

to the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) is a museum and private art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

, which now owns the work.

References

Notes

External links

* Finding aid to th
Curtis Publishing Company records
at th
University of Pennsylvania Libraries

Curtis Publishing Company website

Listing and photographs
at the

Historic American Buildings Survey Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

* Th
Curtis Publishing Company Records
including financial records, advertising standards, magazines and newspaper clippings, are available for research use at the

Historical Society of Pennsylvania The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a long-established research facility, based in Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chronicles, maps, press reports and v ...

. * http://www.ushistory.org/districts/washingtonsquare/curti.htm
Flickr photos of the Curtis Building

Curtis Institute of Music website

at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...

contains illustrative advertising posters for the Curtis Publishing Company.
FBI file on the Curtis Publishing Company
{{Authority control 1891 establishments in Pennsylvania American companies established in 1891 Companies based in Philadelphia Landmarks in Philadelphia Publishing companies established in 1891 Philadelphia Register of Historic Places Washington Square West, Philadelphia