Robert Einar "Pete" Petersen (September 10, 1926 – March 23, 2007) was an American

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

who founded the

Petersen Automotive Museum The Petersen Automotive Museum is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile neighborhood of Los Angeles. One of the world's largest automotive museums, the Petersen Automotive Museum is a nonprofit organization specializi ...

in 1994.Hevesi, Dennis (March 27, 2007)
Robert Petersen, Publisher of Auto Buff Magazines, Dies at 80.
''

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 d ...

Biography

Early life

Robert Einar "Pete" Petersen was born on September 10, 1926 in

East Los Angeles, California East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010 United States Cen ...

. He was of

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

descent. He learned about cars from helping his father, a truck mechanic. After graduating from

Barstow High School Barstow High School is a public high school located in Barstow, California. The school serves about 1,400 students in grades 9 to 12 from across the city and in outlying areas. History Founded in 1915, the school soon expanded and relocated to it ...

, he served in the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Career

After the war, Petersen left

Barstow, California Barstow is a city in San Bernardino County, California, in the Mojave Desert of Southern California. Located in the Inland Empire region of California, the population was 25,415 at the 2020 census. Barstow is an important crossroads for the I ...

for Los Angeles and found work at

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

(MGM), becoming a publicist there within a year. After being laid off during staff cuts, Petersen and other ex-MGM staff started Hollywood Publicity Associates, a consulting firm. In the summer of 1947, the company was commissioned to publicize an exhibition of

hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...

s held the following winter. While working to promote the exhibition, Petersen realized that there were no media specific to hot rods or hot-rodding. Seeing an opportunity, Petersen and Robert Lindsay, another member of the promotion team for the exhibition, left Hollywood Publicity Associates that autumn and began development of ''

Hot Rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...

'' magazine. The first issue of the magazine, with a run of 5,000 copies, was released to coincide with the Los Angeles Hot Rod Exhibition, the show Petersen and Lindsay were initially contracted to publicize. The founders sold the copies of the magazine at the steps of the exhibition. After a successful debut, the magazine continued to sell out and grow in readership. By mid-1949, monthly sales exceeded 50,000 copies. Starting from this, Petersen built his publishing empire on automotive-themed publications, including ''

Car Craft ''Car Craft'' was a magazine devoted to automobiles, hot rodding, and drag racing. It was published by the Motor Trend Group. It was established in 1953. The magazine published articles directed at inexperienced and expert car mechanics, such as ...

'', '' Rod & Custom'', '' Sports Car Graphic'', and ''

Motor Trend ''MotorTrend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949. Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles published ''MotorTrend'' until 19 ...

''.Stone, Matt
Interview: Robert E. Petersen - From Rods To Riches.
''

'' He also published ''

CARtoons A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...

'', ''

Guns & Ammo ''Guns & Ammo'' is a magazine dedicated to firearms, hunting, competitive shooting, reloading, and other shooting-related activities in the United States. The magazine offers reviews on firearms, ammunition, optics and shooting gear. Also include ...

'', ''

SPORT Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

'', ''

Motorcyclist Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small- displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous c ...

'', '' Motor Life'', ''

Hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

'', ''

Mountain Biker Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

'', ''

Photographic Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed i ...

'', ''

Teen Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

'', ''

Tiger Beat ''Tiger Beat'' is an American internet teen fan magazine originally published by The Laufer Company, and marketed primarily to adolescent girls. The magazine had a paper edition that was sold at stores until December 2018. History and profile ...

'', and ''

Sassy Magazine ''Sassy'' magazine is a defunct, general interest teen magazine aimed at young women. It covered a wide variety of topics, and was intended as a feminist counterpoint to '' Seventeen'' and '' YM'' magazines. ''Sassy'' existed between 1988 and 1996 ...

'', 4 Wheel and Off Road In 1996, Petersen sold his company Petersen Publishing Company to a

private equity fund A private equity fund (abbreviated as PE fund) is a collective investment scheme used for making investments in various equity (and to a lesser extent debt) securities according to one of the investment strategies associated with private equity ...

for $450 million which, in 1999, sold it for $2 billion to publisher

EMAP Ascential plc, formerly EMAP, is a British business-to-business media business specialising in exhibitions & festivals and information services. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Ric ...

. In 2001 it was sold to

Primedia Primedia is a South African media group, headquartered in Sandton, Johannesburg. History Primedia was established in 1994 and its listing on the JSE Securities Exchange was completed in April 1995. Primedia remained listed on the JSE until 1 O ...

. In 2007 Primedia's enthusiast publications, including all the once-Petersen titles, were again sold to Source Interlink, controlled by

Ron Burkle Ronald Wayne Burkle (born November 12, 1952) is an American businessman. He is the co-founder and managing partner of The Yucaipa Companies, LLC, a private investment firm that specializes in U.S. companies in the distribution, logistics, food, ...

. In 1999 Petersen bought ''

Sports Afield ''Sports Afield'' (SA) is an American outdoor magazine headquartered in Huntington Beach, California. Founded in 1887 by Claude King as a hunting and fishing magazine, it is the oldest published outdoor magazine in North America. The first issue, ...

'' from

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, televis ...

and he sold it in 2002 to the owners of

Safari Press Safari Press is a book publishing company specializing in books on big-game hunting and sporting firearms and is being run by Dr. Jacqueline Neufeld, editor in chief, and Ludo J. Wurfbain, publisher. It is privately owned by a small group of shar ...

Death

He died on March 23, 2007 at St. John's Health Center in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

of complications from

neuroendocrine cancer Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are neoplasms that arise from cells of the endocrine (hormonal) and nervous systems. They most commonly occur in the intestine, where they are often called carcinoid tumors, but they are also found in the pancreas, lun ...

.O'Dell, John (March 24, 2007)
From a humble start, he found a road to success.
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' Margie Petersen died on November 25, 2011.

Collections

An avid hunter and collector, Petersen had amassed a sizable collection featuring hundreds of unique and historically significant antique and modern firearms. Following Petersen's death, in following with his wishes, Petersen's widow donated a 400-piece portion of his extensive collection to the National Rifle Association's National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, VA. Among his collection the work of firearm engraver Richard Roy of Connecticut Shotgun are displayed. In addition, he is the owner of the only three

Parker Parker may refer to: Persons * Parker (given name) * Parker (surname) Places Place names in the United States *Parker, Arizona *Parker, Colorado * Parker, Florida * Parker, Idaho * Parker, Kansas * Parker, Missouri * Parker, North Carolina *Park ...

Invincibles ever produced by Parker Bros.Archived a
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Wayback Machine

Personal life

He married Margie McNally in 1963 and had two sons who died in a 1975 plane crash. They resided in a mansion located at 625 Mountain drive in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

, formerly owned by actors

Harry Joe Brown Harry Joe Brown (September 22, 1890 – April 28, 1972) was an American film producer, and earlier a theatre and film director. Biography Harry Joe Brown was born in 1890 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a producer, he had a partnership wit ...

and

Sally Eilers Dorothea Sally Eilers (December 11, 1908 – January 5, 1978) was an American actress. Early life Eilers was born in New York City to a Jewish-American mother, Paula (or Pauline) Schoenberger, and a German-American father, Hio Peter Eilers ( ...

.Victoria Talbot, 'Beverly Hills Cultural Heritage Commission Splits 2 To 2 on Mountain Drive Landmark Vote', ''The Beverly Hills Courier'', October 03, 2014, Vol. XXXXVIIII, No. 39, p. 4 It was designed by architect Paul R. Williams and built from 1937 to 1938.

Awards

He was inducted into the

Motorsports Hall of Fame of America The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycles, Sp ...

in 2013.Robert E. Petersen
at the

References

External links

Petersen Automotive Museum historyPetersen Automotive Museum's Commemorative ArticleRobert Petersen Gallery at the National Firearms Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petersen, Robert E. 1926 births 2007 deaths People from Beverly Hills, California American publishers (people) Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from pancreatic cancer Museum founders United States Army Air Forces soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II People from East Los Angeles, California 20th-century philanthropists