Session: 123456789101112131415161718192021         Page 710711712713714715716717718719720721722723724725726727728729730731732733734735736737738739740741742743744745746747748749750751752753754755756757758759760761762763764765 of 1029

just a certain amount of patching. After about ten years, you've got to do an overhaul job; and bring out virtually a new edition and not just a patched up one. We have kept the American College Dictionary well up to date.

Then gradually a gleam came into our eyes to really do a definitive job: an unabridged American dictionary.

Do you know how this idea evolved at all?

Sure, we watched the competition. The big competition was Webster's unabridged; and their third edition, which they brought out about seven or eight years ago, was murdered by the critics--murdered. In fact, a great many college people and what not prefer the old second edition to the third one. We thought that they were ripe to be plucked. The field was wide open.

Of course, this was a tremendous undertaking. For the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, at one time we had almost 400 people working for us. At that time, we divided the subjects up very carefully and had top men in every field. In each different subject, we had a very important man as a consulting editor. So our new dictionary is superb. Jess Stein was again our editor. He is now ten times more famous than Clarence Barnhart. He is the man in America for dictionaries. This one cost, I would say, between $3,000,000 and $4,000,000 and took about four years to do; but by this time we were able to swing it. By the