# Sylvester & Orphanos

Sylvester & Orphanos was a publishing house originally founded in Los Angeles by Ralph Sylvester, Stathis Orphanos and George Fisher in 1972. When Fisher moved to New York City, Sylvester & Orphanos specialized in limited-signed press books.

## Origins

Christopher Isherwood was the first author published by Sylvester & Orphanos with a deluxe edition of Christopher and His Kind illustrated by original artwork from Isherwood's partner, Don Bachardy.
Through Isherwood, Sylvester & Orphanos met Gore Vidal and they published Vidal’s Sex Is Politics and Vice Versa.

## Founders

Stathis Orphanos (October 12, 1940 – January 13, 2018) and Ralph Sylvester (January 13, 1934 – January 23, 2018) were partners in life and business. They met in Los Angeles in 1960.
Stathis Orphanos was also a photographer and among his works are portraits of:
* Don Bachardy
* Kaye Ballard
* Clive Barker
* Donald Barthelme
* John Barth
* Leonard Baskin
* Robert Bloch
* Claire Bloom
* Steve Bond
* John Malcolm Brinnin
* Shirley Burden
* Paul Cadmus
* Erskine Caldwell
* Jim Carroll
* Maxwell Caulfield
* John Cheever
* Robert Coover
* Malcolm Cowley
* Mart Crowley
* George Cukor
* Jules Dassin
* Elaine de Kooning
* James Dickey
* P. David Ebersole
* Harlan Ellison
* Odysseus Elytis
* James Galanos
* Graham Greene
* Thom Gunn
* Julie Harris
* David Hockney
* Horst P. Horst
* Todd Hughes
* John Irving
* Christopher Isherwood
* Thomas Keneally
* Gavin Lambert
* Jack Larson and James Bridges
* Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee
* Naguib Mahfouz
* Michael Mailer
* Norman Mailer
* James Merrill
* Brian Moore
* Esai Morales
* Hermes Pan
* Reynolds Price
* José Quintero
* Rex Reed
* Edouard Roditi
* Philip Roth
* May Sarton
* John Schlesinger
* Budd Schulberg
* Hubert Selby, Jr.
* Sir Stephen Spender
* Robert Stone
* William Styron
* Edmund Teske
* John Updike
* Mamie Van Doren
* Gore Vidal
* John A. Williams
* Colin Wilson
In 2015, Sylvester & Orphanos donated their catalogue and photographs to the Library of Congress.

## Exhibitions

* Photography exhibition, San Diego County, 1988
* Los Angeles, 1989, curated by Shirley Burden, former Chairman of the Department of Photography at New York's Museum of Modern Art
* University of California, Los Angeles, 1990, Combined exhibition of Stahis Orphanos photographs and limited-edition books, curated by Dan Luckenbill
* Beverly Hills Public Library 1995, curated by Stefan Klima
* Beverly Hills Civic Center, 1996, retrospective of Stathis Orphanos' photographs
* Honor: Marine Portraits, Oceanside Museum of Art, 2010
* My Cavafy, Photo Exhibit by Stathis Orphanos, Affinity, West Hollywood
* 2014, The Perfect Exposure Gallery, Los Angeles

## Catalogue

Sylvester & Orphanos published in total 25 limited editions:
* 1976, Christopher Isherwood, Christopher and His Kind, 130 copies
* 1978, Joyce Carol Oates, Sentimental Education
* 1979, Gore Vidal, Sex is Politics and Vice Versa
* 1979, William Styron, Shadrach
* 1980, Graham Greene, How Father Quixote Became a Monsignor
* 1980, John Cheever, The Leaves, the Lion-Fish, and the Bear
* 1980, Nadine Gordimer, Town and Country Lovers
* 1980, V. S. Naipaul, A Congo Diary
* 1980, Margaret Drabble, Hassan's Tower
* 1980, James Merrill, Samos
* 1980, Donald Barthelme, The Emerald
* 1980, J. V. Cunningham, Dickinson: Lyric and Legend
* 1980, Reynolds Price, A Final Letter
* 1980, Philip Roth, Novotny's Pain
* 1981, James Purdy, Scrap of Paper & The Beiry-Picker: Two Plays by James Purdy
* 1981, Tennessee Williams, It Happened the Day the Sun Rose
* 1981, Paul Bowles, In the Red Room
* 1982, Richard Adams, The Legend of Te Tuna
* 1982, John Cheever, The National Pastime
* 1983, Graham Greene, A Quick Look Behind: Footnotes to an Autobiography
* 1985, William Hjortsberg, Tales & Fables
* 1985, John Updike, Impressions
* 1988, John Cheever, Expelled
* 1990, Graham Greene, A Weed Among the Flowers
* 1990, Yannis Tsarouchis: The Face of Modem Greece (in preparation in 1990, likely not released)