Harlin was born and raised in Virginia, Minnesota, attended Carnegie Tech and began his career in 1958 as an off-Broadway actor and producer.
[2] He also worked at Crowell-Collier and Dell Publishing until striking out on his own by establishing his own company, Harlin Quist, Inc., in 1965.
[4] He gave the start to some notable authors and illustrators, including Guillermo Mordillo, Albert Cullum, Guy Billout, Nicole Claveloux, and Patrick Couratin.
He established a company in Paris with French designer and illustrator Patrick Couratin and they reissued limited editions of some of his best-known books as well as publishing new ones for European distribution.
Quist received an award from the French government for his achievements as a book publisher in Europe.