Valentino Silvio Bompiani (27 September 1898 – 23 February 1992) was an Italian publisher, writer and playwright.[1]
Born inAscoli Piceno (Marche), he entered the publishing world as a secretary working forArnoldo Mondadori in 1922. He rose quickly and by 1928 had become the director of the Milanese publisher Unitas. In 1929 he founded thepublishing house carrying his name, which became one of the most important in Italy. By 1992, Bompiani had published 17 Nobel Prize winners.[2] It is currently part ofRCS Libri.
He was involved in a number of censorship cases, one of which was related toElio Vittorini'sAmericana (published in 1942),[3] and was viewed as anti-Fascist, though he was willing to collaborate for financial reasons, unlike other publishers such asEditori Laterza andGiulio Einaudi Editore. In 1933,Mussolini acquired the rights to an Italian translation ofMein Kampf; afterArnoldo Mondadori Editore refused, Bompiani accepted the offer in July 1933.[1] The book was translated by Jewish translatorAngelo Treves.
He debuted as a playwright in 1931 withL’amante virtuosa. His masterwork is considered to beAlbertina of 1945.
He also wrote about his activities as a publisher inVia privata (1971),Dialoghi a distanza (1986) andIl mestiere dell’editore (1988).
Bompiani, married to Mini Bregoli and with two daughters, died inMilan in 1992.[2]
