The Numismatic Literary Guild (NLG) board of directors recently announced it chose award-winning author, journalist and former CBS broadcaster Donn Pearlman, of Las Vegas, to be its acting executive director.
Pearlman succeeds legendary journalist Ed Reiter, of Nanticoke, Pa., who served as NLG executive director from 1990 until his death last month. Pearlman is described as a “long-time stalwart of the organization,” having served as an NLG director for various terms over the past four decades. From 1978-89, he served as emcee and organizer of its annual “Bash,” and he has continued through the decades to also serve the NLG as a judge, member sponsor and awards presenter.
“I am honoured to be selected by the NLG Board,” said Pearlman, who’s also president of Donn Pearlman & Associates Public Relations in Las Vegas. “Ed Reiter was a long-time friend and a respected leader in the numismatic community.”
AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR
Pearlman has written hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles as well as columns promoting the numismatic hobby and profession. He was a long-time columnist of The Numismatist, the official publication of American Numismatic Association (ANA). He’s also the author of books on broadcasting, baseball cards and coins.
Pearlman received the NLG’s highest honour—the Clemy—in 1984, and was recipient of the ANA’s highest honour, the Farran Zerbe Award, in 2015.
Other honours the incoming acting executive director received include the 2017 Burnett Anderson Award for Excellence in Numismatic Writing, presented jointly by the ANA, American Numismatic Society and the NLG; the Professional Numismatists Guild’s Art Kagin Ambassador Award (2011), Significant Contribution Award (2005) and Sol Kaplan Award (1977); ANA Glenn Smedley Award (1993) and Medal of Merit (1996). He also served two terms as an ANA governor from 1989-93.
A non-profit organization composed of more than 400 writers, editors, authors and content producers, the NLG has promoted numismatic education and recognizes outstanding achievements in numismatic journalism, books, newsletters and auction catalogues since its founding in 1968. The organization conducts an annual symposium as well as a dinner and awards ceremony, “The Bash,” at the ANA World’s Fair of Money.
CBS RADIO BROADCASTER
In the late 1970s to mid-1980s Pearlman was producer and narrator of a weekly series of numismatic-related educational programs for CBS Radio. He also was the script writer for the acclaimed, joint PNG-ANA 1995 documentary, Money: History in Your Hands, narrated by actor James Earl Jones.
“I first learned of the NLG in 1977 when I attended my first ANA convention. NLG founding Executive Director Lee Martin invited me to join, and I promptly did. When I returned home, Lee told me that I was named the master of ceremonies of the next year’s Bash. I happily remained MC for about a decade,” recalled Pearlman.
Membership in the NLG is open to authors of numismatic books; publishers and editors of recognized numismatic periodicals or club publications in the numismatic field; staff writers or columnists of such periodicals; writers whose work has been published in such periodicals or club journals; published research numismatists; auction catalogers; curators of recognized numismatic museums; broadcasters and numismatic online content producers, and others deemed worthy by the NLG Membership Committee.
A membership application is available online at NLGonline.org/NLG_Member_Form.pdf.