The “Big Book Look”

Visitors often ask about the font used on the covers of Roth’s books between 1969 and 1975—it appears it was Caslon Swash (Arriola), an adaptation of Benguiat’s Caslon Black Swash. In the design of the Philip Roth Personal Library, C&G Partners used Cabernet, a revival of the Caslon Swash. The font was utilized on the wall and shelf quotes, in the captions, and, of course, in the Philip Roth Personal Library logo.

The font appeared on Portnoy’s Complaint, which was published by Random House in 1969. The cover was designed by Paul Bacon (1923-2015), who graduated from Arts High School in Newark, NJ, in 1940. Bacon worked on the covers of many bestsellers and was recognized for “the big book look,” which incorporated a large, bold title. Bacon’s approximately 6,500 covers included ones for Roth’s colleagues: William Styron’s The Confessions of Nat Turner and Sophie’s Choice and Robert Caro’s The Power Broker. Please refer to the article below which includes Bacon’s reasoning for the yellow design on the cover of Portnoy’s Complaint. [1]

References:

Heller, Steven.“Paul Bacon, Bestseller,” PRINT Magazine, June 9, 2015. https://www.printmag.com/daily-heller/paul-bacon-bestseller/