Roy Edward Larsen (April 20, 1899 – September 9, 1979) was an American publishing executive who worked for

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 ...

for 56 years. Following founders Henry Luce and

Briton Hadden Briton Hadden (February 18, 1898 – February 27, 1929) was the co-founder of ''Time'' magazine with his Yale classmate Henry Luce. He was ''Time''s first editor and the inventor of its revolutionary writing style, known as Timestyle. Though ...

, Larsen was credited with being responsible for the company's growth and success. At the time of his death he was described as being "one of the most influential figures in the golden age of the company's empire."

Early life

Larsen was born in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Massachusetts, the son of Robert Larsen and Stella Belyea Larsen. He attended

Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...

, graduating in 1917, and entered

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

, graduating in 1921. While in college he served as treasurer and business manager of ''

The Harvard Advocate ''The Harvard Advocate'', the art and literary magazine of Harvard College, is the oldest continuously published college art and literary magazine in the United States. The magazine (published then in newspaper format) was founded by Charles S. ...

'', where he brought the newspaper back to profitability by increasing circulation.

Career

Larsen directed sales from the inception of ''Time'' magazine, and he is credited with recruiting the first 12,000 subscribers via a direct mail campaign in 1923. He continued to increase sales and circulation over the next 30 years. When Hadden died in 1929, Larsen was appointed as ''Time''s business manager by Luce. In 1939 Larsen succeeded Luce as president of ''Time'', serving in this position until his retirement in April 1979. Larsen helped to organize and develop ''

The March of Time ''The March of Time'' is an American newsreel series sponsored by Time Inc. and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was based on a radio news series broadcast from 1931 to 1945. The "voice" of both series was Westbrook Van Voorhis. Pr ...

'', an Academy Award winning radio and news film series which was produced from 1935 to 1951. He also served as publisher of ''

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, energ ...

'' magazine from 1936 to 1946. A fitness buff, Larsen developed an idea for a sports magazine in 1954, which later turned into ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

''. A conservationist, Larsen organized the Nantucket Conservation Fund in 1965, and was elected to the board of the

Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

in 1973. As a tribute to Larsen, Time Inc. gave the conservancy a 2,000-acre tract in East Texas now known as the Roy E. Larsen Sandyland Sanctuary. Larsen died in 1979, and the following year was inducted into the

Advertising Hall of Fame The Advertising Hall of Fame, operated by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), began in 1948 as a result of a proposal by the New York Ad Club and its president, Andrew Haire, to the Advertising Federation of America, the predecessor organiza ...

Personal life

Larsen married Margaret Zerbe in 1927. They had four children; a daughter, Anne (Simonson) and three sons: Robert, Christopher and Jonathan, the latter becoming editor-in-chief of ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Larsen, Roy E. 1899 births 1979 deaths Harvard College alumni Time (magazine) people American publishing chief executives American magazine publishers (people) Boston Latin School alumni