Agent and former editor Perry H. Knowlton died on 6 July 2007 of natural causes resulting from Alzheimer’s Disease. The 80-year-old was the former chairman and CEO of the Curtis Brown, Ltd. agency.
He got his start in publishing after serving in World War II, as a salesman for Charles Scribner’s. Eventually, he moved on to an editorial position, before leaving to join Curtis Brown in 1959, where he ran the agency’s book department. Among the many others and estates he represented were C.S. Lewis and A.A. Milne.
Knowlton was also a philanthropist, with a special affection for environmental causes. He was one of the founders of the Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth. He also dabbled in acting and modeling and was one of the original “Marlboro men.”
Timothy Knowlton said of his father: “To his family, friends, and colleagues, he was always a dedicated mentor, advocate, enthusiast, and enabler. He was one of the few true ‘renaissance men’ I’ve ever known.”