Glenn Ellis, a longtime salesperson at Random House who stepped down as v-p and director of adult field sales in 2014, died on Monday in hospice care in the Bronx. The cause was brain cancer. He was 70.
Ellis began as a field representative for Random House in the 1970s before rising to management positions.During his career, he was responsible for sales through retail and wholesale channels in both the adult and children’s categories. When he stepped down in 2014, he had spent a total of 43 years with the company.
A reader of history and biography, Ellis was ever a champion of the book as an instrument of learning. In an email, Penguin Random House president of sales Jaci Updike quoted Ellis as saying: “The books we sell have been a program of personal education.” Updike also commended Ellis's adaptability and his talent for finding new talent.
Ellis is survived by his wife Therese and his daughter Kate. A memorial service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on April 15 at the Fred H. McGrath & Son funeral home in Bronxville, N.Y.
