David Cully, who served in executive positions at some of publishing’s biggest companies, died on February 14 after a battle with cancer. He was 68.
During his career, Cully held executive spots with Barnes & Noble, Simon & Schuster, Putnam Berkley Publishing Group, and Waldenbooks. Cully joined Baker & Taylor in 2008, and retired as president of the wholesaler in August 2019. Cully was at B&T during an eventful period, including in 2016, when the company was acquired by the Follett Corp. In 2019, he oversaw B&T’s exit from the trade wholesale business.
Cully's colleagues at Follett and Baker & Taylor described him as "a voracious reader" and one of the most caring, humorous, pragmatic, interesting, and happy people we’ve ever met," a spokesperson for the companies said, with a particular passion for ensuring that children were exposed to books and reading early in their lives, spending time "visiting various schools and adored reading to young kids to get them engaged in literacy." In 2017, Cully was honored by Goddard-Riverside Community Center as its Person of the Year.
Cully is survived by his wife, Kensington publisher Lynn Cully.
