Former Rights Director Marcella Berger Remembered by Simon & Schuster

For 35 years with Simon & Schuster, Marcella Berger had retired from the company in 2011.

Image – iStockphoto: Bruno Coelhopt

By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson

Berger Sold Rights to Titles by Heller, Eggers, Clinton

Visitation hours are being held Friday (March 20) for Marcella Berger, the late vice-president and director of subsidiary rights for 35 years with Simon & Schuster.

Berger died on Monday (March 16) at age 74.

She had retired from Simon & Schuster in 2011. Before moving to S&S, she was with TY Crowell Company and the John Day Company.

Some of Berger’s highest-profile rights sales included Good as Gold by Joseph Heller; Chronicles by Bob Dylan; The Final Days by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward; Living History by Hillary Clinton; and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, the book that brought Dave Eggers to widespread attention.

Marcella Berger. Image: Papavero Funeral Home

Papavero’s Funeral Home in Maspeth, New York, has announced visitation hours from 2 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. ET Friday. A funeral Mass is scheduled for Saturday (March 21) at 9:45 a.m. ET at St. Joan of Arc Church in Jackson Heights, New York.

Publishing Perspectives is told that Berger’s family understands that attendance may be impossible in the current coronavirus public health emergency. Information is provided here by the funeral home for those who may wish to make a memorial donation.

More from Publishing Perspectives in obituaries is here.

About the Author

Porter Anderson

Porter Anderson is a non-resident fellow of Trends Research & Advisory, and he has been named International Trade Press Journalist of the Year in London Book Fair's International Excellence Awards. He is Editor-in-Chief of Publishing Perspectives. He formerly was Associate Editor for The FutureBook at London's The Bookseller. Anderson was for more than a decade a senior producer and anchor with CNN.com, CNN International, and CNN USA. As an arts critic (National Critics Institute), he was with The Village Voice, the Dallas Times Herald, and the Tampa Tribune, now the Tampa Bay Times. He co-founded The Hot Sheet, a newsletter for authors, which now is owned and operated by Jane Friedman.