To promote two new books on presidential memorabilia, HarperCollins, parent company News Corp. and sister company Fox News have assembled a traveling exhibition. “The American Presidency” exhibit features 80 objects showcased in Campaigning for President and The President’s Table, both hardcover coffee-table books from Collins. The exhibit contains objects from the two largest private presidential memorabilia collections in America and will travel to nine public libraries in states with historically important caucuses and primary elections.
Collins published Campaigning for President: Memorabilia from the Nation’s Finest Private Collection by Jordan M. Wright ($35) last week with a 50,000-copy first printing, and The President’s Table: Two Hundred Years of Dining and Diplomacy by Barry H. Landau ($34.95) in October 2007 with a 40,000-copy first printing. The idea for the exhibit originated with Collins, “when we saw we had the two books on the list,” said Collins v-p, senior director of publicity Paul Olsewski. The exhibit includes items from the collections of both authors.
The exhibit will tour to Des Moines, Iowa; Dallas; Denver; Indianapolis; Memphis; Milwaukee; Omaha; Parma, Ohio (near Cleveland); and St. Louis, Mo. In each city, a branch of the local public library will host a two- or three-day event. The authors, both avid collectors, will attend the events, sign books and be available for interviews. Some libraries are hosting fund-raising events around the exhibit. Each library will receive a supply of exhibition catalogues, postcards and posters promoting the exhibit dates. Olsewski said booksellers are working in conjunction with libraries and selling books at the events.
Fox, News Corp. and HarperCollins are equally underwriting the project, and Fox affiliates in the local markets will promote the events.
