Brooks Thomas

At Harper & Row Thomas served as vice president, CEO, president, and chief executive. During this time, Harper & Row sued The Nation over its publication of President Gerald Ford's memoirs in a case that challenged fair use in copyright law. Harper & Row prevailed before the Supreme Court.

Thomas was president of the Association of American Publishers (as well as Harper & Row) in 1983 when that group voted to fund a revamped version of American Book Awards, ending a four-year experiment on the Academy Awards model. For 1984 the number of awards was cut from 27 to three.^[3][4]

After leaving Harper & Row, Thomas devoted himself to several charities. These included Outward Bound, the educational organization that promotes self-discovery in the outdoors. He became a trustee of Outward Bound USA in 1980, serving as its chairman from 1984 to 1987. He was a trustee of Outward Bound International from 1997 to 2003, and in 2000 he became a trustee of Outward Bound's Expeditionary Learning Schools. Thomas was also involved with Young Audiences, a national organization that provides arts programs to schools. Additionally, Thomas was chairman of the Vail Valley Institute, which holds seminars on public issues.^[1]

Brooks Thomas died in San Diego from complications of a brain injury after a fall that he had suffered several weeks earlier. At the time, he was on his way to San Francisco to attend an Outward Bound board meeting.^[1]