Townsend Hoopes, 82

by Staff -- Publishers Weekly, 10/18/2004

Townsend (Tim) Hoopes, who served as president of the AAP from 1973 until 1986, died late last month. He was 82. It was during Hoopes's tenure that the consolidation of the publishing industry began in earnest, and a growing divide between large and small publishers, as well as differences over the mission of the AAP, threatened the viability of the association. In a letter announcing his plans for retirement, Hoopes made some observations about publishing circa 1985 that could easily apply today: "Book publishing now finds itself in a period of dramatic and apparently protracted change, driven by economics and technology. The rapidly shifting conditions confronting the industry are frequently bewildering and even contradictory, and no one seems to have a clairvoyant view of the likely outcome." Before joining the AAP, Hoopes had a long career in government service, including a stint as the undersecretary of the Air Force. A prolific author, Hoopes wrote The Devil and John Foster Dulles and The Limits of Intervention, among other titles.