Kirby McCauley (1941-2014)

Agent and editor Kirby McCauley, 72, died August 30, 2014 of renal failure.

McAuley was September 11, 1941 in Minnesota, and attended the University of Minnesota. He became a literary agent in the 1970s, and soon built one of the most successful agencies in the business, representing authors including Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, and Roger Zelazny. His sister Kay McCauley later joined his Pimlico Agency, which still represents many authors and estates.

McCauley helped found the World Fantasy Convention in 1975, chairing the first convention in Providence RI, serving on the board for several years, and helping to create the World Fantasy Awards. He was also a respected anthology editor, creating reprint anthology Night Chills (1975) and World Fantasy Award-winning original anthologies Frights (1976) and Dark Forces (1980), the latter still considered a landmark work. He received a special convention award from the World Fantasy Convention in 1979.

For more, see George R.R. Martin’s moving tribute. See the October issue of Locus for a complete obituary.