Callaway Arts & Entertainment has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
The illustrated publisher founded by Nicholas Callaway, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2019, is known for publishing works by Madonna, the Beatles, and Bob Dylan, among other musicians and artists.
In the filing, Callaway reported liabilities of between $1 million to $10 million and has assets in the same range. It owed its top 20 unsecured credits approximately $4.15 million. Nearly $1.7 million of that is owed to Hachette Book Group, which has distributed Callaway’s titles since 2023.
The publisher’s ultra-luxury Sistine Chapel trilogy, which launched in 2020 with a whopping $22,000 price tag, seems to have played a role in its financial woes: Callaway owes more than $1 million to its Italian publishing partner Scripta Maneat.
Other creditors include Bob Dylan (owed $450,000), Transcontinental Printing, Callaway staff members, and multiple law firms.
Callaway was founded as a production house for illustrated titles in 1980, but pivoted to book publishing in 2003. Around the time the first iPhone debuted in 2007, it expanded into multimedia production, with projects including TV shows, toys, and apps. In 2019, Nicholas Callaway expressed a desire to evolve the publisher into “a platform-agnostic intellectual property and production company.”
"This restructuring marks an important step in positioning Callaway for its next chapter, with a stronger balance sheet and long-term capital foundation," Callaway wrote in a statement to PW. "For more than 45 years, we have set the standard for books of quality and innovation in art and culture, and we remain fully committed to that legacy as we move forward."
