{"value"=>"<p>Books & Co., a bookstore in New York City, was the brainchild of Jeannette Watson, (b. 1945), born out of a life-long love of literature. Watson, the granddaughter of IBM founder, Thomas Watson, Sr. was named for her grand-mother, Jeannette Kittredge. Watson, shy and insecure as a child, was dubbed \"Madame-Nose-in-Books\" by her father because she preferred to spend her time reading rather than socializing. She was born and raised in a Greenwich, Connecticut family which included one older brother and four younger sisters. She was educated in public elementary schools until age 12, then sent to a private boarding school and Sarah Lawrence College where she majored in early childhood education. As early as her senior year she and her friends discussed dreams about owning a bookstore.</p> <p>Watson married in her senior year and had a son very shortly after. After graduation her new family moved to Grosse Point, MI, but neither her marriage nor time in the Midwest was to last very long. Divorcing at age 26, she returned to New York as a working single mother. In the summer of 1978, just after Watson opened Books & Co., she was re-introduced to a childhood acquaintance at a family wedding. Alex Sanger, the grandson of birth-control proponent Margaret Sanger, was an attorney at that time (later he became President of Planned Parenthood). They married in December 21, 1978. Privately she uses her married name: Jeannette Sanger.</p> <p>In the mid-1970's Watson underwent surgery to correct a congenital condition of the hip, which required a year's recovery, giving her the time to consider her dream plans for a bookstore. Her father, Thomas Watson, Jr., offered to lend her half the start-up money, $150,000. She began looking for a person with whom to go into business. The name of Burt Britton, highly regarded among booksellers in the city, was frequently suggested as the best choice. Watson felt that his knowledge of contemporary fiction matched her knowledge of the classics. After several meetings with her, he agreed to join in the venture.</p> <p>A location for the shop was found in a prime spot, on Madison Avenue in the 70's, directly next door to the Whitney Museum of Art. A 15-year lease for 939 Madison Avenue was signed in October, 1977 at a rental cost of $60,000 per year. The space included two floors of about 1,000 square feet each, and a basement of about 750 square feet. The old brownstone was in very poor condition and major renovations had to be completed before it would be occupant-ready. The store opened for business by June, but the official opening party was planned for October 18, 1978 to take advantage of the city's Fall season.</p> <p>Watson's idea was for the store to be a salon, to have the cozy, comfortable, lived-in atmosphere of a writer's hangout. She intended to sell literary fiction, poetry, and signed books; no self-help or do-it-yourself books or the popular fiction and best sellers that are often found in chain stores. The staff developed several notable physical features in the shop that added to its unique character: the front window display, the photo gallery, the art gallery, the inviting green leather couch on the upstairs level, and most importantly, \"The Wall\", which at first was a few shelves reserved to highlight the favorite titles of Burt Britton, but grew to be a whole wall of books which featured what are considered the literary classics of any language.</p> <p>To all appearances Books & Co. was a great success in the first year. Informal readings soon gave way to formal events. It was becoming the salon Watson had planned, and it gained even more attention when it was noticed by literary reviewers. But lax financial management and internal conflicts were creating serious problems underneath the surface.</p> <p>Problems between the two partners came to light when Britton did not make the expected appearance at the first anniversary party. Watson admits that she didn't pay enough attention to the business side of the shop and allowed critical financial mistakes to be made that first year, which created tensions between partners. Bookkeeping practices were sketchy, and no plans had been made to hire a bookkeeper to keep track of finances or stock. An advisor was brought in to help guide the business practices, and he made many sound suggestions that helped, but they weren't enough to circumvent serious financial problems.</p> <p>Watson realized she had to make serious changes to keep her dream afloat. She decided to buy out Burt Britton and run the shop herself. By January 1980 he and Watson came to an agreement dissolving the relationship. Her father offered to buy her overstock, store it on his property and as she was able, she would buy it back from him. As part of their agreement, an auditor would come in to check the account books on a regular basis. Tight control over the inventory was essential and limits were set on the amount of stock to be purchased at any one time.</p> <p>A new manager/buyer (Stan Lewis) was hired, but remained only a year. This gave Watson time to strengthen her business sense and fine tune job responsibilities. The most significant change was to split the manager/buyer into two separate positions. Watson offered clerk Peter Philbrook the manager's position; she gave the responsibility of buying to another employee. Philbrook, Andrew Bergen, and Susan Scott were some of Watson's first employees at the shop. These three soon formed the core of employees that, along with Watson, became the character of Books & Co. They develop a close relationship with her over the decade or more the four worked together, which added to the congenial atmosphere for which Books & Co. became well known.</p> <p>As the business grew, Watson introduced several functions to promote it. She very much wanted to showcase new writers and gave many their first readings. The reading series, which quickly became a popular function of Books & Co., began informally. It gave its first formal reading on January 9, 1980 with the advent of The 939 Foundation, which Watson created to sponsor regular weekly readings and other special events. A salaried coordinator for the series was hired (Barbara Penn) and paid out of Foundation money, which was partially raised by charging admission to the events. However the pressures of additional readings and charging admission for them did not sit well with Watson. After five years Watson suspended the Foundation and ran the reading series herself, free of charge, as a regular function of the store.</p> <p>Over time the reading series of Books & Co. hosted a wide variety of writers, artists, and occasionally special causes. Readings often had themes such as celebrations of particular writers or favorite subjects. Panel discussions on art, the writer's craft, screenwriting, or the best of American fiction, staged readings of plays, and poetry marathons filled the shop with an enthusiastic public.</p> <p>In the mid-1980's Watson was advised to buy the 939 Madison Avenue building to have a bit of business security. However, Books & Co.'s neighbor, The Whitney Museum of Art, had already made an accepted offer for the property. The relationship between the new landlord and tenant was cordial. Some minor facilities problems were taken care of in a timely manner by the museum. In 1992, the original 15-year lease on the Books & Co. space expired. The Whitney renewed the lease, but at a huge increase in rent, five years at $120,000 per year. By this time independent bookstores, already negatively affected by the 1987 economic downturn, were suffering financial losses due to the rapid growth of the superstore. The severe rise in rent put additional stress not only on the shop, but on Watson too, who was already funneling personal monies into the business to keep it in the black.</p> <p>The Whitney Museum of Art director David Ross, an acquaintance of Watson's who was aware of her situation, proposed that the museum and the store become partners in early 1996, with the museum absorbing the staff and inventory of the bookstore. Watson was offered a five-year employment contract as manager. She was very interested in the proposal and pursued the idea, but negotiations stalled in late spring when the museum stopped answering her calls or responding to letters.</p> <p>In October of 1996 The Whitney broke its silence and informed Watson that the partnership offer was withdrawn. Watson, who had explored and depleted other options already, decided it was time to close the shop and move on to other things. On January 18, 1997 The New York Times ran the announcement of Books & Co.'s closing as of May 31. The article quoted Watson as saying, \"We just cannot afford to pay the rent.\" At the same time, she was informed by the museum that the 1997-lease renewal would increase the rent by an additional 2.5%, which Watson also could not afford.</p> <p>The Whitney Museum of Art took the brunt of much criticism from the literary world and the general public alike, as it appeared that the museum was maliciously bent on putting the shop out of business. The article generated a loud public outcry. Many newspapers featured frequent opinion pieces and articles updating the public about the situation. Watson, the shop and its activities became the focus of television news reports and radio interviews. Several private citizens came forward offering to raise funds to keep the store open.</p> <p>It was, in the end, Jeannette Watson's decision to close the economically struggling store after twenty years. The final reading was held on May 15, 1997 with Edna O'Brien reading from Down by the River and a big party celebrating the anniversary. The store closed its doors on May 31, 1997, but the name Books & Co. lives on as a publishing imprint under Turtle Point Press, a venture Watson started in 1996 with a focus on keeping classic titles in print.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p>The records of Books & Co. include correspondence, newspaper and magazine clippings, guest lists, invoices, tax reports, diaries, guest books, invitations, notes, greeting cards, letters, artwork, postcards, advertisement materials, flyers, newsletters, introductory remarks to readings, press kits, photographic prints, negatives, and contact sheets, monographs, scrapbooks, audio and videocassettes, and paper ephemera.</p> <p>The collection documents very strongly the social and intellectual life that was the heart of the store, fostered through its public events, readings, and the relationships developed between the owner and her clientele, both authors and the book-buying public. It documents less strongly the business of buying and selling books. It does not include the financial records, which would tell the underlying story of the dissolving of the Watson and Britton partnership, the part her father played in the enterprise, the problems with the Whitney Museum and the subsequent decisions made by Watson.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p class='list-head'>The Books & Co. records are arranged in seven series:</p>\n<ul class='arrangement series-descriptions'>\n<li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184159'>Series I. Individual Correspondence</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1979-1997</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series includes handwritten notes from authors, friends and acquaintances, some business-related correspondence, Christmas cards, artistic photographs, booklets, invitations to dinners and readings, (both those held at Books & Co. by Watson and those to which she was invited), introductory remarks for readings, artwork, children's drawings, and faxes from and about authors and other personal acquaintances of Watson. Correspondents include: <span class=\"persname\">Ray Blount, Jr.,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Harold Brodkey,</span> <span class=\"persname\"> Russell Chatham,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Susan Cheever,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Christopher Coe,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Hope Cooke,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Carlos Fuentes,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Brendan Gill,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Jim Harrison,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Max Kaplan,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Ann Lauterbach,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Fran Lebowitz,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Ilona A. Vitarius,</span>and <span class=\"persname\">Ted Wilentz</span>among many other names. It may be of interest to note here that the file for <span class=\"persname\">Burt Britton</span>contains only an unsigned copy (perhaps a draft) of his 1980 termination agreement with Watson. Correspondence with staff includes letters from <span class=\"persname\">Susan Scott,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Stan Lewis,</span>and <span class=\"persname\">Peter Philbrook.</span></p> Alphabetical by author's last name</div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184424'>Series II. General Files</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1980-1997</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The General Files include general correspondence; correspondence with related businesses, publishers, and philanthropic organizations, invitations, staff memos, clippings, anniversary books, poetry and poetry-related events. There is a good deal of correspondence about the closing of the store, support letters on Books & Co.'s behalf, written to Watson and to The Whitney Museum of Art, and clippings from local newspapers and magazines about the unfolding events and the store closing (see \"Books & Co. - Closing\" sub-series). Financial records include the list of names considered \"House Accounts\" (those who were able to receive a discount on purchases, which were labeled \"C2\" accounts by the store), some expense reports, income tax returns for five non-sequential years, customer invoices, operations statements and a few other odd files. The \"Readings\" sub-series includes introductory remarks, party plans, and other miscellaneous items for readings from 1980 to1997. Box 8, folder 8, titled \"Doodles,\" contains cartoon drawings of scenes from a bookstore, usually drawn on the backs of event invitations. They are probably the work of a talented employee who usually focused his or her attention on Peter Philbrook as a subject, though occasionally honored others.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184544'>Series III. Diaries and Guest Books</a></div>\n<div class='series-description'><p> Two guest books include names, addresses, and comments from guests at Books & Co. One is dated 1982-1984, the other lists guests for \"9/20/78\", \"9/20/88\" and was used for the 15th anniversary party on December 10, 1992, and the \"Final Party\" on May 29, 1997. There are five diaries and one single 1983 page ripped out of a diary. Watson records very brief entries, usually just a few lines on any given day. Most of the diaries, with exception of the 1986-96 diary (\"JWS\" inscribed on cover), are very sparse, containing very few entries over a broad time span. Some of the diaries have information, such as names and opinions, edited out by Watson herself; she scribbled over words.</p> <p>The small red diary, dated 1979, was used as a date book and records visits by <span class=\"persname\">Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Morris West,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Bill Cosby,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Joseph Heller,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Truman Capote,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Kurt Vonnegut,</span> and <span class=\"persname\">Neil Simon,</span>among others. Sometimes their purchases or a conversation were also noted.</p> <p>Another diary appears to be notes or thoughts for stories for <span class=\"persname\">Lynne Tillman's</span>book about Books & Co. <span class=\"title\">(Bookstore: the life and times of Jeannette Watson and Books & Company, New York, Harcourt Brace, <span class=\"date\">1999)</span></span></p> <p>The diary c.1984 (lace-covered), includes thoughts by Watson on the store, who visited, stories about visits, her opinions on the readings and attendance, comings and goings of staff, and personal details such as comments on the birth of Watson's sons. Specific people mentioned include <span class=\"persname\">Isamu Noguchi,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Frances Steloff,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Tennessee Williams,</span> <span class=\"persname\"> Bernard Malamud,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Hortense Callisher,</span> <span class=\"persname\"> Paul Goldberger,</span> <span class=\"persname\">George Braziller,</span> <span class=\"persname\"> Shirley Buren,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Jacqueline Kenndy Onassis,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Woody Allen,</span> <span class=\"persname\">Virgil Thomson,</span>and <span class=\"persname\">Fran Lebowitz.</span></p> <p>The diary dated 10/6/95, inscribed by \"Susan\", records events from 9/4/96 through 5/20/97, the closing of the store, people who offered to help and Watson's personal feelings about it all.</p> <p>A diary with dates between 1986 and 1996, (\"JWS\" is embossed on the cover) is the most substantial of the five. The first few pages are loose and it appears to have pages missing. It appears to begin in 1986 (determined by reference to the space shuttle explosion). Though the entries are made within a ten-year time span, entries are actually broadly spaced within those ten years. The last recorded date is January 23, 1996. It is the longest of the diaries, and records numerous stories about the comings and goings of the store, the events held there, and particularly Watson's experiences and her feelings towards the clientele or staff, the events, and the general happenings in around her shop. There are several references to her family in this volume, especially her son Ralph, and her father, Thomas. Watson heavily edited this volume.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184548'>Series IV. Scrapbooks</a></div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The scrapbooks record the readings and special parties at or for Books & Co. The scrapbooks include snapshots of authors, audiences, and the shop in general (color, and black and white); small posters or flyers, clippings from newspapers and magazines about the various events held there or the bookstore itself, or The 939 Foundation for the Arts, and gossipy items about who has been seen there; and invitations to various readings. They also include guest lists, schedules for the season, introductory remarks for readings, postcards, and correspondence. Two volumes of note are the anniversary books; one for the 10th and one combining the 15th & 20th (though there is only the invitation to the 20th anniversary party and nothing more). They include the respective invitations and photographs. The span dates for each volume are included in the container list; some of the volume dates overlap and materials within the volumes are not necessarily in exact chronological order. Volume 4 contained many loose 8x10 black and white photos, which were removed to a folder in Box 16</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184560'>Series V. Photographs</a></div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>Includes images of authors during readings and book signings, candid and formal images of Watson alone and with the staff in front of the store, Watson and early partner Burt Britton in a series of formal images shot in front of the store, and many candid snapshots of the various events held at Books & Co. Contact sheets from the 5th anniversary party (May 23, 1983) in the Puck Building are included, along with several 4x6 images from this grouping (Box 16). The series includes the master color negatives of the Books & Co. logo, with a copy of the postcard made from this image. (Box 16).</p> <p>About three-quarters of the images are black and white, 8x10 format, though there is one box of oversized prints, both black and white and color, and a number of smaller snapshots. NOTE: A double asterick (**) indicates more than one person in the image; a number in brackets indicates multiple photographs.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184580'>Series VI. Printed Ephemera</a></div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series includes five copies of the privately published, 10th anniversary commemorative book, <span class=\"title\">Letters to a Bookstore,</span>one in the original packaging with the invitation to the September 29, 1988 celebration; four of the original Books & Co. paper shopping bags, designed by<span class=\"persname\"> Ed Koren;</span>a press kit for Leila Hadley's book, <span class=\"title\">A Journey with Elsa Cloud,</span>published under the Books & Co. imprint of <span class=\"corpname\">Turtle Point Press;</span>a special printing of a Laura (Riding) Jackson poem; and another of a Jim Harrison poem.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/4804#c184587'>Series VII. Audio and Videocassettes</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1991-1997</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The audiocassettes are recordings of readings and the occasional panel discussion at Books & Co. between 1991 and 1997. (Though readings were a featured event at the store as early as 1980, according to Watson, they were not recorded prior to 1991.) Over 100 works were recorded on 79 audiocassettes. Most of the readings feature one author, though several do include two. Several special events, such as a celebration of a specific publishing house or benefit for a particular cause, feature multiple authors or readers. Descriptive entries capture the name of each author and the title of the book from which the author read. If a poet read from a collection of poems, titles of individual works are often, but not always, captured. Most of the readings were under 30 minutes in length, but several do last longer or include audience discussion and questions for the author, requiring the use of the second side of the cassette. These instances are noted in the audiocassette database description (see Appendix B). An alphabetical listing of recorded events and authors, with the date of the event, is found in Appendix A. A chronological listing of readings and events, which includes authors, event title (if a special event), book title, and publisher is included in Appendix E. (Please note that not all of the events between 1991 and 1997 at Books & Co. were recorded.)</p> <p>The eight videocassettes include recordings of NBC, CNBC, and NY1 News television reports which involved Books & Co. as the subject of the report, either regarding the closing of the bookstore, or in discussing the effect of cyber bookstores and super-bookstores on the business of independent shops. Other clips include a \"CBS News Sunday Morning\" report by Charles Kuralt interviewing author/painter Russell Chatham, a friend and reader at Books & Co.; an interview with famed French actress Jeanne Moreau (whom Watson refers to as her \"personal goddess\") speaking about her love of literature and her fondness for Books & Co., which was filmed in the shop, (recorded in French, no English translation available); an interview of Jeannette Watson on the evening of the final reading at Books & Co. (May 15, 1997); and a recording of Watson receiving an award from the New York Society Library, on April 23, 1997, from NYSL Board Chairman William Dean. This clip also includes her acceptance speech and a toast by Brendan Gill.</p></div></li></ul>\n", "type"=>"arrangement"}