TOM SCHANTZ: R.I.P.

Sad news. Tom Schantz, book seller and publisher, mystery fan, and friend, passed away on June 4. Tom loved adventure, gardening, building, and life. He was a journalist, a  Peace Corps volunteer, a reader, a bookseller, a publisher, a teacher, and an activist. He was many things, but I will remember him as a stalwart member of our mystery community. He will be remembered -- and missed.

I knew Tom for many years, but in the past 10, probably only 'saw him' on Facebook. Before that we always chatted at Left Coast Crime and Bouchercon. He always had a table in the bookroom. Tom was on the Left Coast Crime Board, and with his wife Enid, co-chaired the 1995 Left Coast Crime in Boulder, CO. Tom was Fan Guest of Honor at LCC in 2013. I'm pretty sure Tom and Enid put on a Bouchercon, too, and he was awarded a Raven from MWA in 2001

Read about Tom in this LCC program book:
https://www.leftcoastcrime.org/ProgramBooks/2013Program.pdf

Enid and Tom were founders of both The Rue Morgue Mystery Bookstore and The Rue Morgue Press. The Rue Morgue Press was "dedicated to the idea of reprinting 'mysteries for little old ladies of all ages and sexes.' Their specialty was the traditional mystery (1920-1940). Tom and Enid chose the books, edited them, and published them. It was a great imprint.

Enid and Tom, Barbara Peters, and Jim Huang helped found the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association (IMBA), a trade association of retail businesses devoted to the sale of mystery books. The IMBA's goals are simple but so important: to promote specialty mystery booksellers to both the book-buying and the publishing communities and to offer support to member booksellers.