Kathie Coblentz

This article is about the rare book librarian. For the children's book author, see Catherine Cate Coblentz.

Kathie Coblentz (November 4, 1947 – April 3, 2021) was a rare book librarian and author, known for her collaborations with Robert Kapsis on books about film directors such as Clint Eastwood, Woody Allen, and Alfred Hitchcock.^[1][2] She was New York Public Library's third-longest serving employee, starting at the library right after graduating from the University of Michigan in 1969.^[1] She worked as a rare materials cataloger for NYPL's Spencer Collection, a collection of "illustrated word and book bindings." She also wrote posts for the NYPL's blog that considered the Spencer Collection's materials.^[3] Coblentz gave tours of the closed stacks at the library and published her stack tour "patter" on the library's website.^[4]

Kathie Coblentz
Born	November 4, 1947 Lansing, Michigan
Died	April 3, 2021(2021-04-03) (aged 73) New York City, New York
Occupation	librarian

In 2003, Coblentz published The New York Public Library Guide to Organizing a Home Library. In her view, a home organizing system "doesn't have to be logical, it just has to work for you."^[5] The book came packaged with software to assist bibliophiles with classifying and cataloging their collections.^[6] She had an extensive home library with sixteen bookcases, containing approximately 3,600 books.^[5]

Personal life

Coblentz was born on November 4, 1947, to Dr. Jacob Coblentz, a bacteriologist and Sidney Ellarea Coblentz, an art teacher and artist.^[1] She graduated from Michigan State University in 1968 with a degree in German and received an MLIS from the University of Michigan in 1969.^[1] She read or spoke thirteen languages.^[1] She was killed by an automobile leaving a parking garage in Midtown Manhattan.^[7]