Author and artist Edward ST. John Gorey (1925-2000) was a child prodigy, drawing pictures at the age of two, and teaching himself to read by the age of three.
In late 1952, with school behind him, he was offered a position with Doubleday's new imprint Doubleday Anchor in New York City (Gorey had attended Harvard with Barbara Epstein, the wife of Doubleday Anchor publisher Jason Epstein). Gorey rapidly became a significant figure in their art department, designing more than fifty covers and, more importantly, becoming recognized as a major commercial illustrator. Gorey moved through other publishing Houses (Looking Glass Library, Bobs-Merrill) before finally turning freelance in the Mid-1960s—a position he maintained for the rest of his life.