In Memory: Peter William Jovanovich, Age 75

Rye – Peter Jovanovich, a peerless educational and academic publisher, died July 15 at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. He was 75.

Born in Queens, N.Y., on Feb. 4, 1949, he grew up in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y.

He was the son of Martha (Davis) and William Jovanovich. His father started off as a textbook salesman for Harcourt Brace and Co. and built it into a publishing powerhouse. In 1972, the name of the company was changed to Harcourt Brace Jovanovich (HBJ).

After graduating summa cum laude from Princeton University with a degree in English Literature in 1972, Peter went to work at Macmillan Publishing, where he quickly rose from textbook salesman to vice president of the general books division.

He went on to become director of the trade department at HBJ, then executive vice president. In 1988, after a brutal, hostile takeover attempt by Sir Robert Maxwell, the board of directors chose Peter as president and CEO over his father to run the international corporation.

While once described by The New York Times as “a hatchet man,” Peter saved thousands of jobs at HBJ through selling off corporate assets and divisions, including Sea World.

In 1992, the company was sold, and Mr. Jovanovich and his family returned to New York. He was asked to run Macmillan/McGraw-Hill, a school publishing company. He went on to become president of McGraw-Hill’s educational and professional publishing group. During his tenure, McGraw-Hill became the largest educational publisher in the world.

Seven years later, he joined Pearson, another esteemed publisher, where he oversaw the creation of Pearson Education, which eventually surpassed McGraw-Hill and became the world’s largest educational publisher, with over $4 billion in sales and 20,000 employees.

He served as a director and chairman of the Association of American Publishers. A lifelong country music fan, one of his fondest memories from his time with the Association was standing on the stage with Dolly Parton.

In 2007, he was elected to the Educational Publishers Hall of Fame.

For the last four decades, he served on the board of the Alfred Harcourt Foundation, which provides college scholarships to students of need in the NY Metropolitan area.

In 2003, Mr. Jovanovich was diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans. He was moved up to “No. 1” on the lung transplant list at Columbia Presbyterian just before the start of the new year and was eternally grateful to receive a double-lung transplant in March 2004. He retired the following year.

“Peter was brave throughout the many medical crises he went through starting in 2001, and never gave up the fight to live on,” said his wife, Robin Thrush Jovanovich. “His doctors admired his perseverance, wit, and ‘model patient’ behavior.”

Peter and his family lived in many different parts of the country during his career. They settled in Rye, N.Y. in 1992 with their sons, Nick and Will, who are now, respectively, a real estate agent with Douglas Elliman in Miami Beach, and a financial advisor at UBS Financial Services in Manhattan.

In retirement, Mr. Jovanovich consulted with several educational companies in the U.S. and Asia. He also served his community. In 2009, he was elected to the Rye City Council, where he served with distinction and became Deputy Mayor. He also served on the board of the Rye Nature Center.

He never missed a chance to spend time with family and dear friends. His grandchildren, Peter and Clara, were the light of his life. He cheered the loudest at every Little League game and took every opportunity to dance with his granddaughter.

He credited his sons and his daughter-in-law, Sarah Martin, a DNP student at Columbia University School of Nursing, for their life-saving support.

He was devoted to his wife, who he met on a blind date 50 years ago this month.

A service will be held July 31 at 11:00 a.m. at Rye Presbyterian Church. A reception will follow at 12:30 p.m. at Westchester Country Club.