Pascal Avram "Pat" Covici (November 4, 1885–October 14, 1964) was a Romanian Jewish-American book publisher and editor, best known for his close associations with authors such as John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, and many more noted American literary figures, mainly through his position at Viking Press.
Ben Hecht's 1922 novel, Fantazius Mallare, published by the firm, was labeled obscene, restricted, and confiscated by post office officials.
The play The Front Page by Hecht and Charles MacArthur and the novel The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall garnered the company quick success.
[1] In addition to writers like Gene Fowler, Wyndham Lewis, Clifford Odets, and Nathanael West, their key author was John Steinbeck, whom they signed in 1934.
[4] Covici also worked on the Viking Portable Library and with authors like Joseph Campbell, Ludwig Bemelmans, Gilbert Highet, Lionel Trilling, Arthur Miller, George Gamow, Shirley Jackson, Willy Ley, Marianne Moore, and Saul Bellow.