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In Remembrance
Lufkin, James Markham, 3/24/1919 – 3/12/2007
Photo courtesy of the Star Tribune on 3/18/2007:
Jim Lufkin ~ Godfather of the Society for Scholarly Publishing
By Barbara Meyers and Judy Holoviak
For those of us in SSP who had the pleasure and privilege to know and work with Jim Lufkin, seeing him receive the Society’s first award declaring him “Godfather” of the SSP was a special moment. Jim’s contributions to the transfer of professional and scholarly information as well as to the ultimate formation of the Society were legend and there was (and still is) no one better deserving of that appellation.
How exactly did Jim become Godfather of SSP? It started when he conceived a 1973 conference on scientific journals, which was really the first of its kind. Many familiar with SSP may not know that prior to Jim’s effort there had been no attempt to bring together decision makers from commercial and nonprofit publishers with librarian, information specialists, and other representatives of the user community. The 1973 conference and its three successors were noted for their lively– even heated– debates. Jim insisted that there be ample time for informal exchange– something we still strive for at SSP meetings. In those early conferences Jim was everywhere– inspiring the program planners, helping moderate debate, seeing that the coffee was hot, and regaling all with his special wit. At the close of the 1973 conference Jim declared the founding of the Association of Scientific Journal Editors, Publishers, and Users and promised
there would be no dues.
At the last of the Lufkin-inspired conferences, the idea of starting a new society was publicly tested. That new society became SSP. The three crafters of the founding prospectus and original bylaws sought to capture the flavor and value of Jim’s conferences and to extend those to a full-service society, complete with dues. All who have been involved with SSP since owe much to the imagination, dedication,
and general good humor of our Godfather.
Jim’s professional accomplishments such as being Editor of the The Scientific Honeyweller coupled with his splendid wit brought much to the early SSP meetings. He led us in the singing of Broadway tunes at pre-meeting receptions and late night soirees as well as penning and directing humorous skits and operettas. If you were lucky enough to have enjoyed his remake of Gilbert and Sullivan’s HMS Pinafore I’m sure the choral phrase “I…B…M…Japan!” still rings in your memory.
Jim was one of our industry’s early visionaries. In his “Observations of a Godfather,” his luncheon speech at the first annual meeting in Boston (1979), his comments included the admonition “We need to pay more attention to the social implications of what we are saying as well as what we are doing. … scientists have a reputation … of being snobs … This is unfair. What really happens is that scientists turn away from the enormous difficulty of communicating with laymen.” I dare to say those words were the harbingers of the recent sea change in opening up scientific communications to the public. Perhaps if Jim’s words were heeded by the scientific and scholarly communities sooner outside forces would not have been brought to bear thus creating our current state of affairs.
Jim’s contributions to the Society’s early days and beyond were numerous and it saddens me that today’s professionals are learning about them because of his final farewell. His spirit remains however in the “looking over each other’s walls’ that we participate in each year. It is in his honor that we still do so.
Dear Godfather, thank you for your guidance. May we never stray too far from your wisdom.
Photo courtesy of the Star Tribune on 3/18/2007:
Jim Lufkin ~ Godfather of the Society for Scholarly Publishing
By Barbara Meyers and Judy Holoviak
For those of us in SSP who had the pleasure and privilege to know and work with Jim Lufkin, seeing him receive the Society’s first award declaring him “Godfather” of the SSP was a special moment. Jim’s contributions to the transfer of professional and scholarly information as well as to the ultimate formation of the Society were legend and there was (and still is) no one better deserving of that appellation.
How exactly did Jim become Godfather of SSP? It started when he conceived a 1973 conference on scientific journals, which was really the first of its kind. Many familiar with SSP may not know that prior to Jim’s effort there had been no attempt to bring together decision makers from commercial and nonprofit publishers with librarian, information specialists, and other representatives of the user community. The 1973 conference and its three successors were noted for their lively– even heated– debates. Jim insisted that there be ample time for informal exchange– something we still strive for at SSP meetings. In those early conferences Jim was everywhere– inspiring the program planners, helping moderate debate, seeing that the coffee was hot, and regaling all with his special wit. At the close of the 1973 conference Jim declared the founding of the Association of Scientific Journal Editors, Publishers, and Users and promised
there would be no dues.
At the last of the Lufkin-inspired conferences, the idea of starting a new society was publicly tested. That new society became SSP. The three crafters of the founding prospectus and original bylaws sought to capture the flavor and value of Jim’s conferences and to extend those to a full-service society, complete with dues. All who have been involved with SSP since owe much to the imagination, dedication,
and general good humor of our Godfather.
Jim’s professional accomplishments such as being Editor of the The Scientific Honeyweller coupled with his splendid wit brought much to the early SSP meetings. He led us in the singing of Broadway tunes at pre-meeting receptions and late night soirees as well as penning and directing humorous skits and operettas. If you were lucky enough to have enjoyed his remake of Gilbert and Sullivan’s HMS Pinafore I’m sure the choral phrase “I…B…M…Japan!” still rings in your memory.
Jim was one of our industry’s early visionaries. In his “Observations of a Godfather,” his luncheon speech at the first annual meeting in Boston (1979), his comments included the admonition “We need to pay more attention to the social implications of what we are saying as well as what we are doing. … scientists have a reputation … of being snobs … This is unfair. What really happens is that scientists turn away from the enormous difficulty of communicating with laymen.” I dare to say those words were the harbingers of the recent sea change in opening up scientific communications to the public. Perhaps if Jim’s words were heeded by the scientific and scholarly communities sooner outside forces would not have been brought to bear thus creating our current state of affairs.
Jim’s contributions to the Society’s early days and beyond were numerous and it saddens me that today’s professionals are learning about them because of his final farewell. His spirit remains however in the “looking over each other’s walls’ that we participate in each year. It is in his honor that we still do so.
Dear Godfather, thank you for your guidance. May we never stray too far from your wisdom.