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ever tolerated. He had a big office, beautifully fixed up, and the man who had decorated it was a German designer named Lucien Bernhard, and I loved his offices so much that when we moved to 57th Street it was Lucien Bernhard who decorated our new home.
How did you get Rockwell Kent?
Rockwell Kent I met with Elmer Adler. The day we dreamed up the name of Random House, Rockwell dropped in. He was sitting at my desk facing Donald, and I went to the bathroom, which is where I get some of my finest ideas. And we were talking then about doing a few books on the side. And while I was on the throne I got this inspiration, and came out and said, “I've got the name for our publishing house. We just said we were going to publish a few books on the side at random. Let's call it Random House.”
Did Mr. Klopfer approve?
Donald liked it, and Rockwell Kent said, “That's a great name. I'll draw your trademark.” So, sitting at my desk, he took a piece of paper and in five minutes he drew Random House, which has been our trademark ever since.
Did you have to give him a nice fee?
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