K-III releases Hawkes - EVP Richard Hawkes leaves K-III Magazine Corp for Ruper Murdoch's News America Publishing Inc - Brief Article

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Oct 1, 1993

K-III Magazines, which has one of the leanest corporate staffs among major magazine companies, has become even leaner with the departure of executive vice president Richard Hawkes and the disbanding of its international division. Hawkes, who held the same position at Murdoch Magazines before most of the titles were sold to K-III, found a new job quickly, returning to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.

As vice president at News America Publishing, he will help seek out and analyze new business opportunities and special projects. K-III insiders say Hawkes' departure was not acrimonious, but that CEO and president Harry McQuillen felt that most of the day-to-day operations could be handled by himself, other corporate staff, and group publishers such as Terry Russell (Automobile and Premiere) and Janice Grossman (Seventeen, Soap Opera Digest, Soap Opera Weekly, and head of the group sales function). The three-person international division, which oversaw Soap Opera Digest's Italian edition and Premiere's British and Japanese editions, was disbanded in early September, and each magazine is now responsible for its own licensing agreements.