Cyrus Hermann Kotzschmar Curtis
| Cyrus H. K. Curtis | |
|---|---|
Cyrus H. K. Curtis, about 1913
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| Born |
June 18, 1850 Portland, Maine, U.S. |
| Died | June 7, 1933 (aged 82) Wyncote, Pennsylvania |
| Occupation | Publisher |
| Spouse(s) |
Louisa Knapp Kate Stanwood Cutter Pillsbury |
| Children | Mary Louise Curtis Bok Zimbalist |
Cyrus Hermann Kotzschmar Curtis (June 18, 1850 – June 7, 1933) was an American publisher of magazines and newspapers, including the Ladies' Home Journal and the Saturday Evening Post.
Born in Portland, Maine, Curtis was forced to leave high school after his first year when in 1866 his family lost their home in the Great Fire of Portland. He held a variety of newspaper and advertising jobs in Portland and Boston before starting his first publication, a weekly called the People's Ledger, in Boston in 1872. In 1876, he moved to publishing center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to reduce his printing costs.
Curtis's first wife was Louisa Knapp. In 1883, Knapp contributed a one-page supplement to the Tribune and Farmer, a magazine published by Curtis. The following year, the supplement became an independent publication with Louisa as the editor. Its original name was The Ladies Home Journal and Practical Housekeeper, but Knapp dropped the last three words in 1886.The Ladies' Home Journal rapidly became the leading magazine of its type, reaching a circulation of one million within ten years. Louisa Knapp remained its editor until she was succeeded by Edward William Bok in 1889. Bok became Louisa and Cyrus Curtis's son-in-law in 1896 when he married their daughter, Mary Louise. Bok retired from the magazine in 1919 but the changes he made vastly increased circulation.
Curtis founded the Curtis Publishing Company in 1891; it would eventually publish Ladies' Home Journal, the Saturday Evening Post, Holiday, and others. A separate company founded by Curtis, Curtis-Martin Newspapers, controlled several newspapers, including for a time the Philadelphia Public Ledger, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the New York Evening Post. Management mistakes at the newspapers led to poor financial returns, and eventually they were sold.
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