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Green Tiger Press collection

 Collection
Identifier: SC060

Scope and Contents

Collection consists of five folders related to Green Tiger Press and its publication ventures. Collection consists of news clippings, catalogs, ephemera, an oral history conducted with owner/publisher Jerry Macchia, correspondence, and a short history of the company.

Dates

  • 1989-07-15 - 2014-06-24

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research. The Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room is accessible by appointment only, Monday-Friday, 8am - 4pm. Final requests for materials must be made one hour prior to closing. Please submit requests for archival materials at least 24 hours in advance of desired appointment. Materials requested over the weekend will be available on the following Tuesday at the earliest. Please note that Special Collections and University Archives observes all campus holiday closures as noted in the Library Calendar. For more information, please send an email to archives@csusm.edu.

Conditions Governing Use

Property rights reside with California State University San Marcos. Copyrights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or to publish, please contact archives@csusm.edu.


Permission to examine Library materials is not authorization to publish or to reproduce the examined material in whole, or in part. Persons wishing to quote, publish, perform, reproduce, or otherwise make use of an item in the Library’s collections must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of the copyright holder.


The researcher assumes full responsibility for use of the material and agrees to hold harmless the University Library, and California State University, against all claims, demands, costs, and expenses incurred by copyright infringement or any other legal or regulatory cause of action arising from the use of the Library's materials.


In assuming full responsibility for use of the material, the researcher also understands that the materials they examine may contain Social Security numbers, other personal identifiers, and/or sensitive material on potentially living and identifiable individuals (e.g., medical, evaluative, or personally invasive information). The researcher agrees not to record, reproduce, or disclose any Social Security number or other information of a highly personal nature that may be found.


Biographical / Historical

The Green Tiger Press was founded in 1970 by Sandra Darling, Harold Darling, and Harold Leigh, and was a fine press and publisher dedicated to creating children’s literature in the style of fine printing and illustration of past eras. Originally focusing on illustration, Green Tiger Press reproduced select images from older books to create stationary and similar products. In 1972, Green Tiger Press published its first book, All Mirrors Are Magic Mirrors, which led to the creation of a long line of publications, both original and reprints of classic works. Green Tiger also continued its creation and publication of stationary, cards, calendars, and similar works. By 1986 Green Tiger Press was near bankruptcy; Jerry Macchia, a retired businessman took it over and one of the first things he did was to transition Green Tiger Press from a press and publisher to just a press, getting rid of the printers and focusing more intently on publishing and sales. In 1990 Macchia sold Green Tiger Press to Simon & Schuster Publishing. By the end of Macchia’s ownership, Green Tiger doubled its sales, moved company from downtown San Diego to a suburban San Marcos office park, and published 140 to 150 titles while maintaining its stationary line. Simon and Schuster however had no intention of keeping the Press local to San Diego County: the business was moved to Manhattan and local employees received severance packages.


Sandra and Harold Darling, two of the three original owners of Green Tiger Press, started Laughing Elephant Books, and independent publisher, in 1993. The Green Tiger Press imprint was re-acquired by the Darlings in the early 2000s. Benjamin Darling, son of Sandra and Harold, now runs the company’s book division.

Extent

5 folders

Language

English

Overview

The Green Tiger Press collection was assembled by the California State University Library with the assistance of Green Tiger Press owner/publisher Jerry Macchia. The collection concerns the history of the Green Tiger Press, a fine printing press that ran out of San Diego, California, and later San Marcos, California.

Arrangement

Collection consists of five files compiled by the library. Arrangement is to the file level, as is description.

Physical Location

small manuscripts

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Some materials in the colleciton were given to then California State University Library dean Marion Reid circa 1992. An oral history was conducted of owner/publisher Jerry Macchia by Reid in May of 1992. Some materials, such as press clippings, have been compiled over the years by the library.

Related Materials

The library holds a few titles in its holdings that were published by Green Tiger Press. Most titles are found in the libary's Juvenile Collection on the 5th floor and titles can be found by searching "Green Tiger Press" in the library's OneSearch discovery tool.

Statement on Harmful Language and Content in our Records and Resources

Processing Information

Processed by Sean Visintainer, 2024 January to 2024 April.

Source

Status
Completed
Author
Sean Visintainer
Date
2024-04-17
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the CSUSM Special Collections Repository

Contact:
California State University San Marcos Library
333 S. Twin Oaks Valley Rd
San Marcos California 92096-0001 United States
760-750-4312