Morris Philipson, the director of the University of Chicago Press from 1967 to 2000, died November 3 at 85 from a heart attack.
During Philipson's tenure, UCP published around 200 titles per year, many of which were important and ambitious works. The titles include A River Runs Through It in 1976, translated works by Jean-Paul Sartre and A Dance to the Music of Time, the 12-volume cycle of novels. Philipson was particularly drawn to publishing works that had long production schedules and were labor-intensive, including the 2,800-page study of Flaubert by Sartre: The Family Idiot: Gustave Flaubert, 1821-1857.
Once, when asked about the difference between bigger publishers and university publishers, Philipson said, "Commercial publishers must think of maximizing profit. University presses must think of minimizing losses."
