Episode 87: Otto Penzler

If you've been with us for a while, you'll have heard about Otto Penzler, BSI ("The King of Bohemia") before. He was our guest on Episode 17 when we talked about book collecting.Otto is back with us to talk about the genesis of The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories, the largest anthology of stories about Sherlock Holmes to date, as well as the rest of his enterprises. We learn about what goes into selecting (and discarding) stories that make up the nine Big Book anthologies under the Vintage Crime/Black Lizard label from Random House.As if Otto's considerable and copious editing doesn't keep him busy enough, the additional Otto Penzler Enterprises include the Mysterious Press and the Mysterious Bookshop. From a dozen books a year via the Press, an epublishing platform, and proprietary publishing just for the bookstore. What impressed is that that Otto's business acumen, timing and good fortune tend to converge across his enterprises, making him quite successful at what he does — despite any misgivings about his memory.Otto manages to survive our "Mental Exaltations" quiz program, which he plays on behalf of a lucky listener, who will go home with a copy of The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes.