UniversityofCalifornia Berkeley Regional Oral History Office University of California The Bancroft Library Berkeley, California University History Series August Fruge A PUBLISHER S CAREER WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS, THE SIERRA CLUB, AND THE CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY Includes an Interview with Susan Fruge With an Introduction by Harlan Kessel Interviewed by Suzanne B. Riess 1997-1998 Copyright 2001 by The Regents of the University of California Since 1954 the Regional Oral History Office has been interviewing leading participants in or well-placed witnesses to major events in the development of northern California, the West, and the nation. Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through tape-recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well- informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. The tape recording is transcribed, lightly edited for continuity and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewee. The corrected manuscript is indexed, bound with photographs and illustrative materials, and placed in The Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley, and in other research collections for scholarly use. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account, offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is reflective, partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ************************************ All uses of this manuscript are covered by a legal agreement between The Regents of the University of California and August Fruge dated February 25, 2001. The manuscript is thereby made available for research purposes. All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to The Bancroft Library of the University of California, Berkeley. No part of the manuscript may be quoted for publication without the written permission of the Director of The Bancroft Library of the University of California, Berkeley. Requests for permission to quote for publication should be addressed to the Regional Oral History Office, 486 Bancroft Library, Mail Code 6000, University of California, Berkeley 94720-6000, and should include identification of the specific passages to be quoted, anticipated use of the passages, and identification of the user. The legal agreement with August Fruge requires that he be notified of the request and allowed thirty days in which to respond. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: August Fruge, Publisher s Career with "A the University of California Press, the Sierra Club, and the California Native Plant Society," an oral history conducted in 1997-1998 by Suzanne Riess, Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 2001. Copy no. August and Susan Fruge at lunch at the 29 Palms Inn March 2000 Photograph by Suzanne Riess