William L. Maher Sr.

William L. Bill' Maher, Sr. January 21, 1928 - July 7, 2017 Del Mar William L. (Bill) Maher, Sr. a prominent figure in the publishing industry for over 40 years, died peacefully on July 7, 2017, in Carlsbad, CA, in the 89th year of his industrious life. As a young man, Bill served his country in the Army at the age of 17 during World War II. After his military service, he enrolled in and graduated from Holy Cross College as part of the Class of 1954. He returned to his native New Jersey after graduation, and eventually found employment in the industry that would become his lifelong calling: publishing. During the 1960's and early 1970's he held the position of Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Holt, Rinehart & Winston, while holding court at 383 Madison Avenue, New York. During his tenure, he enjoyed the opportunity and challenge of working with and becoming lifelong friends with such illustrious authors as President Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife Lady Bird, Coretta Scott-King, Dr. Kevin Cahill and the incomparable, Charles M. Schulz. During the mid 1970's, Bill grew weary of the hectic New York pace and heeded the sage advice of Horace Greeley, a publisher himself and headed west. He settled in Los Angeles where he formed a new company which at the time was completely unique for the publishing industry. The company would represent numerous publishers in the sales market rather than the industry standard of in-house salespeople. He formulated a sales team and they covered virtually every state west of the Mississippi including Alaska and Hawaii. The company became so successful that during several years it was the highest grossing sales team in the country.Bill retired after 25 years with the company and over 40 years in the publishing industry as a whole. At the time of his retirement he noted the dramatic changes in the publishing industry and succinctly stated, "It's time to retire, I have seen the future and I'm not part of it." In retirement, Bill enjoyed traveling the world with his lifelong love, Joann Pitts of Del Mar, CA, especially to their favorite city in the world, London. When back in Del Mar, Bill enjoyed yoga, and remained an avid reader his entire life. Each day three to four newspapers were consumed along with his beloved New York Times. He was a long-standing member of both the New York Athletic Club and the Los Angeles Athletic Club.Bill is survived by his sons, William L. Maher, Jr. of Boston, MA, Kevin (Jennifer) Maher of Manasquan, NJ; and his two beloved grandchildren, Maggie Elizabeth (Craig) Kennedy and Sean Patrick Maher. Lastly, he is survived by his life partner, Joann Pitts.Private services will be held. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be forwarded to the Society for the Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease. Please sign the guest book online at legacy.com/obituaries/ delmartimes .