Clyde Newhouse (1920–1986) came from a family of art dealers. In 1878, his grandfather, M. A. Newhouse, opened a shop selling antique books in St. Louis, Missouri. He later expanded the business and founded M.A. Newhouse & Son. Bertram Newhouse,Clyde's father, was chairman of the board of Newhouse Galleries Inc., a firm that expanded to New York and Los Angeles. Clyde succeeded his father in the business, and in 1934 they merged with Ehrich Galleries.