STEPHEN MCNABB

McNABB--Stephen,

a much-loved husband, brother, uncle, mentor and friend who spent his career in book publishing, died on Thursday, September 28, 2017 at his home in New York City. He was 60. Mr. McNabb had a deep passion for books, art, theater and dogs, and most recently was the managing editor of Vintage/Anchor books. He was born at Bethesda Naval Hospital, the son of a Navy officer, and lived in Fairfax, VA. After graduating from Georgetown University, he started work at Dial Press, then spent 30 years at various imprints of Random House. Mr. McNabb often defined his role in publishing as "doing everything nobody else wanted to do" to make a published book the best it could be. Mr. McNabb built a rich life with his husband and partner of 34 years, Toby Bilanow, a deputy editor at the New York Times. The two were married June 24, 2012 in New York City, on the one-year anniversary of legalized same-sex marriage in the state. Mr. McNabb collected first-edition books, art by young artists, antiquities and all things Shaker from the community around his New Lebanon, NY home. When the writer Joan Didion arrived in his workplace one day, he called his partner and asked, "Would it be too much to ask to bring all the Joan Didions to the office?" which she graciously signed. Often, after meeting someone new, he followed up by sending a carefully curated package of books that he sensed they'd enjoy. Mr. McNabb was the son of the late Mary F. McNabb and the late Joseph M. McNabb, of Thousand Oaks, CA. He is survived by his husband, Mr. Bilanow, his siblings Martha McNabb and Michael McNabb of Naples, FL and Suzanne Tobin of Thousand Oaks, nieces, nephews, his golden retriever Otto and numerous decades-long friends who will miss his kindness and generosity, his passion, his hugs and his pies.