Whitman Authors Ken Bressett and Jeff Garrett Will Autograph Books at the American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money
Whitman Publishing Will Debut
A Penny Saved: R.S. Yeoman and His Remarkable Red Book
The hobby’s popular “Red Book” is celebrating its 75th edition this year. In A Penny Saved, Kenneth Bressett presents a history of the groundbreaking book and a biography of author R.S. Yeoman, who helped ignite a boom in coin-collecting starting in the 1930s and 1940s by promoting innovations including coin boards, folders, and new books.
Ken Bressett is editor emeritus of the Guide Book of United States Coins (popularly known as the “Red Book”), which celebrates its 75th edition this year, and of the Handbook of United States Coins (the wholesale-pricing Blue Book) and Mega Red (the 1,504-page expanded version of the Red Book).
His newest title is A Penny Saved: R.S. Yeoman and His Remarkable Red Book, which makes its public debut at the ANA show. This richly illustrated volume tells the history of Whitman Publishing and the Red Book, along with a biography of its original author, R.S. Yeoman, and an autobiography of Bressett himself.
Jeff Garrett, a professional numismatist and former president of the ANA, took over from Bressett as senior editor of the Red Book and the Blue Book in 2018. He also serves as valuations editor of Mega Red, which is edited by another hobby legend, Q. David Bowers.
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- Kenneth Bressett autographing a copy of the 1,504-page Mega Red for Caleb Noel, then news editor (and now editor) of the ANA’s Numismatist magazine. (2017)
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- Senior Editor Jeff Garrett signing copies of the Red Book at the 2018 Whitman Baltimore Expo.
The collectible hardcover 75th-edition Red Book features a special silver-foil cover to mark its milestone anniversary. More than 25 million copies of the book have been sold since it debuted in 1946. Many hobbyists collect the Red Book itself, including varieties and special editions.
“Whitman book-signing sessions give collectors a rare chance to meet some of our favorite hobby authors in person,” said Whitman publisher Dennis Tucker. “Bring your camera and take a selfie with Ken Bressett and Jeff Garrett. You’ll always take home amazing memories from the ANA World’s Fair of Money.”
Whitman Publishing is located at booth #429, at the end of the Ultra-Premium section, near the display of the Tyrant Collection of rare coins. Bressett and Garrett are scheduled to autograph books at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Thursday, August 12, and Friday, August 13.
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- Bressett tells the story of publishing giant Western Printing & Lithographing Company and follows the development of its offshoot, Whitman Publishing, from 1916 to today.
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- R.S. Yeoman and the Red Book revolutionized coin collecting by presenting, for the first time, an impartial, professional catalog of average prices dealers were charging for every U.S. coin. It made the hobby accessible to people of all ages, interests, and budgets.
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- In A Penny Saved, Ken Bressett has compiled never-before-released documents from the Whitman Publishing archives. He also shares a treasure trove of family photos, corporate memorabilia, and personal recollections about the Red Book and the coin dealers, collectors, researchers, and others who have made it so remarkable.
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- Bressett, who worked alongside Yeoman, also shares his own life story in and out of numismatics. Both men have left indelible imprints on the hobby and on publishing in the United States.
