Justin G. Schiller Explained

Justin G. Schiller
Birth Date:10 September 1943
Birth Place:Brooklyn, New York
Alma Mater:Ithaca College 1961 - 65; Harpur College, SUNY Binghamton 1965-1966
Occupation:Bookseller, Justin G Schiller Ltd and Battledore Ltd
Known For:Antiquarian children’s books and related art; writer, lecturer, and collector

Justin Galland Schiller (born September 10, 1943) is an American bookseller specializing in rare and collectible children's books;[1] proprietor during his student days under his own name (1960 - 69), then Justin G. Schiller, Ltd. (1969–2020). Headquartered in New York City, it was the oldest specialist firm in the United States, focusing on historical and collectible children's books, related original art, and manuscripts.[2] In 1988, he formed a second corporation—Battledore Ltd, with his partner and spouse Dennis M V David, to further specialize in original children's book illustration art and the legacy of Maurice Sendak.[3] [4]

Early life

Justin Galland Schiller was born in Brooklyn, New York, on September 10, 1943, to Samuel Gary Schiller and Constance Audrey Galland where he attended Public School 236 and Samuel J Tilden High School.[5] As an eight-year-old boy he started collecting Wizard of Oz books by L. Frank Baum, lending parts of his collection to the author's centennial exhibition at Columbia University’s Butler Library in 1956.[6] At age of 13, Schiller founded the Wizard of Oz Fan Club, afterwards renamed The International Wizard of Oz Club,[7] appointing Frank Joslyn Baum its honorary president.[8] [9]

On the November 3, 1956, television debut of the MGM Wizard of Oz film, host Bert Lahr appeared with 10-year old Liza Minnelli and 13 year-old Schiller, introducing the movie by reading from Schiller's copy of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz first edition (1900).[10]

And as an expert in all things Ozian, Justin appeared in an early episode of the television game show To Tell The Truth (1972) where guest celebrities had to identify him amidst two impostors.[11]

Career

Schiller received a Bachelor of Arts from Ithaca College in 1965 (Honors in English Renaissance Literature). He attended the International Symposium at the Shakespeare Institute at Birmingham University in 1964, and completed a graduate studies/teaching fellowship at Harpur College, SUNY Binghamton, in 1966.

Schiller's first antiquarian books catalogue was issued in 1960; he was elected to the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America in February 1967 (member of the Board of Governors, Class of 1976), where he remains a member.[12] His first specialty catalogue on collectible children's books came out that year. He was also a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association (UK) from 1969 to 1989, and joined the Bibliographical Society of America in 1969, where he's still a member (Council, 2001–2007). He served as chairman on the Antiquarian Booksellers Center board of directors from 1973 to 1976; he has been a member of the Grolier Club since 1982. Schiller was a member of the Association Internationale de Bibliophilie from 1983 to 2012; and the American Antiquarian Society since 1984. He served on the Lenox Society Steering Committee for Rare Books & Manuscripts at the New York Public Library from 1986 to 2000, and the Lewis Carroll Foundation board of directors from 1988 to 1995.[13]

Schiller works to promote awareness in early children's books, writing articles on various authors, artists, genres and collectibles, including reports and annual analyses of the antiquarian children's book field, and annual auction summaries and book reviews in trade journals including AB Bookman’s Weekly, where he contributed from 1971 to 1989.[14]

Schiller has acted as advisor and dealer for some of the major private and institutional collections of early children's books in the world, including the Betsy Beinecke Shirley Collection now at Yale’s Beinecke Library, the Lloyd E. Cotsen Collection of Children’s Books now at Princeton University's Firestone Library, and the Peter J. Solomon Collection now at the Houghton Library, Harvard University, among others.

His legacy extends to two fellowships with the American Antiquarian Society and the Bibliographical Society of America devoted to promoting scholarship in early children’s literature research prior to 1901. The Justin G. Schiller Fellowship at the American Antiquarian Society supports research by both doctoral candidates and postdoctoral scholars from any disciplinary perspective on the production, distribution, literary content, or historical context of American children's books to 1876.

Collections

As an early collector, Schiller formed numerous major collections which resulted in single-owner auctions[15] and exhibitions of what he assembled:

Publications

Documentary film and television appearances

Personal life

Schiller currently lives in Kingston, New York, with his spouse Dennis M V David (together since February 1981, married 27 July 2011),[23] in a Victorian house built for George Coykendall (he managed the Kingston city trolley system for the Coykendall family), above the historic district of Rondout.

References

  1. News: 1989-05-14. ONE COLLECTOR'S PROGRESS. en-US. Washington Post. 2021-04-27. 0190-8286.
  2. July 2002. Welcome to the Land of Oz. Antiquarian Book Review. XXIX:6. 32–37.
  3. November 2003. Maurice Sendak All Around. Horn Book Magazine.
  4. Book: Maurice Sendak a Celebration of the Artist and his Work. Harry N. Abrams. 2013. 978-1-41970-826-8.
  5. Friedberg. Robert M.. September 1957. Justin, Boy King of Oz. Hobbies Magazine. LXII:7. 106–107.
  6. Book: Wizard of Oz catalogue. Columbia University. 1956.
  7. Autumn 2007. Fifty Years of the Oz Club. The Baum Bugle. LI:2. 7–9.
  8. Spring 1971. L Frank Baum and his Teen-Age Serials: a Bibliographical Checklist. Boys' Book Collector. II:3.
  9. 2011. Martin Gardner

    A Personal Reminiscence

    . Bouquet for the Gardener.
  10. Summer 1972. Collecting Children's Literature. American Book Collector.
  11. October 1973. Memoirs of an Antiquarian Bookseller. Horn Book Magazine.
  12. Book: Pioneering Collectible Children's Books: the First One Hundred Years - the Ninth Sol. M. Malkin Lecture in Bibliography. Book Arts Press, University of Virginia. 2002.
  13. Web site: LEWIS CARROLL & ALICE: PRIVATE COLLECTION OF JUSTIN SCHILLER. 2021-04-28. www.christies.com. en.
  14. News: Reif. Rita. 1998-11-15. ART / ARCHITECTURE; Following the Wonderful Logic of 'Wonderland'. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-04-28. 0362-4331.
  15. Web site: Once Upon a Time. 2021-04-28. Fine Books & Collections. en-US.
  16. News: Reif. Rita. 1986-11-28. AUCTIONS. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-04-28. 0362-4331.
  17. News: Grimes. William. 2014-11-13. Mandated to Be a Best Seller. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-04-28. 0362-4331.
  18. Web site: Dawes. Nicholas. Once Upon A Time. 2021-04-28. Antique Trader. 24 November 2020 . en.
  19. Web site: Works about 19th-century American children's magazines. 2021-04-28. www.merrycoz.org.
  20. Web site: Product. 2021-04-28. ABRAMS.
  21. Web site: Review: 'The Booksellers,' starring Dave Bergman, Adam Weinberger, Rebecca Romney, Fran Lebowitz, Nancy Bass Wyden and Justin Schiller. 2021-05-06. CULTURE MIX. en-US.
  22. Web site: Murder Among the Mormons Netflix Official Site. 2021-05-06. www.netflix.com. en.
  23. News: Kahn. Eve M.. 2013-08-01. For Fans of Sendak, the Artist Keeps Giving. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-04-28. 0362-4331.

External links

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