Arthur Ochs Sulzberger: Difference between revisions
Americasroof (talk | contribs) →Notes: succession box |
|||
(187 intermediate revisions by 90 users not shown) | |||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}} |
|||
'''Arthur Ochs "Punch" Sulzberger, Sr.''', born February 5, 1926, to a prominent media and publishing family, is himself an American publisher and businessman. He succeeded his father, [[Arthur Hays Sulzberger]], and maternal grandfather as publisher and chairman of the ''[[The New York Times|New York Times]]'' in 1963, passing the positions to his son [[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.]] in 1992. |
|||
{{short description|American businessman (1926–2012)}} |
|||
{{for|his son|Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.}} |
|||
{{Infobox person |
|||
| othername = Punch Sulzberger |
|||
| image = Arthur Ochs Sulzberger smiling, RIT NandE Vol15 Num36 1984 May17 Complete.jpg |
|||
| alt = |
|||
| caption = Sulzberger in 1984 |
|||
| birth_name = <!-- Arthur Ochs Sulzberger --> |
|||
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|02|05}} |
|||
| birth_place = New York City, U.S. |
|||
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2012|09|29|1926|02|05}} |
|||
| death_place = [[Southampton, New York]], U.S. |
|||
| alma_mater = [[Columbia University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]]) |
|||
| occupation = Newspaper publisher |
|||
| years_active = 1963–1997 |
|||
| spouse = {{Plainlist| |
|||
* {{Marriage|Barbara Winslow Grant|1948|1956|reason=divorced}} |
|||
* {{Marriage|Carol Fox Fuhrman|1956|1995|reason=died}} |
|||
* {{Marriage|Allison S. Cowles|1996|2010|reason=died}} |
|||
}} |
|||
| children = 4, including [[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.|Arthur Jr.]] |
|||
| parents = [[Arthur Hays Sulzberger]]<br>[[Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger|Iphigene Bertha Ochs]] |
|||
| relatives = {{Plainlist| |
|||
* [[Adolph Ochs]] (grandfather) |
|||
* [[Isaac Mayer Wise]] (great-grandfather) |
|||
}} |
|||
| awards = [[Pulitzer Prize]] |
|||
| module = {{Infobox military person |
|||
|embed = yes |
|||
|allegiance = United States |
|||
|branch = [[United States Marine Corps]] |
|||
|serviceyears = 1944–1952 |
|||
|battles = {{Plainlist| |
|||
* [[World War II]] |
|||
* [[Korean War]]}} |
|||
}} |
|||
}} |
|||
'''Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Sr.''' (February 5, 1926 – September 29, 2012) was an American publisher and a businessman. Born into a prominent media and publishing family, Sulzberger became publisher of ''[[The New York Times]]'' in 1963 and chairman of the board of [[The New York Times Company]] in 1973. Sulzberger relinquished to his son, [[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.]], the office of publisher in 1992, and the board chairmanship in 1997. |
|||
==Biography== |
|||
He was born on February 5, 1926 in [[New York City]] to [[Arthur Hays Sulzberger]] and Iphigene Bertha Ochs (daughter of [[Adolph Ochs]], the former publisher and owner of [[The New York Times]] and The [[Chattanooga Times]]).<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/27/obituaries/iphigene-ochs-sulzberger-is-dead-central-figure-in-times-s-history.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm New York Times: "Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger Is Dead; Central Figure in Times's History"] February 27, 1990</ref> Sulzberger graduated from the [[Loomis Chaffee School|Loomis Institute]] and then enlisted into the [[United States Marine Corps]] during [[World War II]] serving from 1944 to 1946, in the [[Pacific Theater of Operations|Pacific Theater]]. He married Barbara Winslow Grant (of mostly [[Scottish American|Scottish]] and [[English American|English]] origin)<ref>[http://www.americanancestors.org/arthur-ochs-sulzberger-jr/ New England Historic Genealogical Society - American Ancestors: #42 Royal Descents, Notable Kin, and Printed Sources: Yankee Ancestors, Mayflower Lines, and Royal Descents and Connections of Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.] by Gary Boyd Roberts; dated December 1, 1999</ref> on July 2, 1948 in a civil ceremony at her parents' home in [[Purchase, New York]].<ref>''Barbara W. Grant Is Bride In Garden, New York Times'', July 3, 1948, p. 7</ref> He earned a B.A. degree in English and History in 1951 at [[Columbia University]]. As a [[Marine Forces Reserve]] he was recalled to active duty during the [[Korean War]]. Following completion of [[The Basic School|officer training]], he saw duty in [[Korea]] and then in [[Washington, D.C.]], before being inactivated. He divorced Barbara Grant Sulzberger in 1956.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=AOkCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA30&dq=sulzberger+episcopalian&hl=en&ei=_w2KTdfEE4nYgQf9wpHLDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=sulzberger%20episcopalian&f=false New Yorker Magazine: "Old Times, New Times" by Edwin Diamond] September 30, 1991</ref> |
|||
== Early life and education == |
|||
He became publisher of The Times in 1963, after the death of his brother-in-law, [[Orvil Dryfoos]]. In the 1960s Sulzberger built a large news-gathering staff at The Times, and was publisher when the newspaper won a [[Pulitzer Prize]] in 1972 for publishing [[The Pentagon Papers]]. He was elected a Fellow of the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] in 1988.<ref name=AAAS>{{cite web|title=Book of Members, 1780-2010: Chapter S|url=http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterS.pdf|publisher=American Academy of Arts and Sciences|accessdate=7 April 2011}}</ref> His son [[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.]] succeeded him as the newspaper's publisher in 1992. Sulzberger remained chairman of [[The New York Times Company]] until October 1997. In 2005, the [[Newspaper Association of America]] (NAA) honored Sulzberger with the [[Katharine Graham]] Lifetime Achievement Award. |
|||
Sulzberger was born to a Jewish family on February 5, 1926, in New York City, the son of [[Arthur Hays Sulzberger]] and [[Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger|Iphigene Bertha Ochs]] (daughter of [[Adolph Ochs]], the former publisher and owner of ''[[The New York Times]]'' and the ''[[Chattanooga Times]]''<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/27/obituaries/iphigene-ochs-sulzberger-is-dead-central-figure-in-times-s-history.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm New York Times: "Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger Is Dead; Central Figure in Times's History"] February 27, 1990</ref> and granddaughter of Rabbi [[Isaac Mayer Wise]]).<ref name=AJAIsaacMeyer>[http://collections.americanjewisharchives.org/ms/ms0436/ms0436.html American Jewish Archives: "A Finding Aid to the Isaac Mayer Wise Papers. 1838–1931 – Manuscript Collection No. 436"] retrieved September 27, 2015</ref><ref name=BenjaminMay>{{cite book |last1=May|first1=Max Benjamin|title=Isaac Mayer Wise: The Founder of American Judaism; a Biography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J9s-AAAAYAAJ&q=Isaac+Mayer+Wise+daughter&pg=PA380|year=1992|publisher=Littman Library Of Jewish Civilization|page=380|isbn=978-0197100592}}</ref> He had a sister named Judy,<ref>{{Cite news |title=Arthur Ochs Sulzberger dies at 86; former New York Times publisher |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2012-sep-30-la-me-arthur-ochs-sulzberger-20120930-story.html#:~:text=He%20was%20born%20Feb.,puppet%20characters%20Punch%20and%20Judy. |access-date=24 January 2023}}</ref> which gave rise to his nickname, "Punch", in reference to the British traditional puppet show, [[Punch and Judy]]. Sulzberger graduated from the [[Loomis Chaffee School]] and then enlisted into the [[United States Marine Corps]] during [[World War II]], serving from 1944 to 1946, in the [[Asiatic-Pacific Theater|Pacific Theater]]. He earned a B.A. degree in English and history in 1951 at [[Columbia University]]. As a student, he roomed with composer [[Philip Springer]] in [[John Jay Hall]].<ref>{{Cite web |title="Santa Baby" Changed My Life |url=https://magazine.columbia.edu/article/santa-baby-changed-my-life |access-date=April 15, 2022 |website=Columbia Magazine |language=en}}</ref> As a member of the [[Marine Forces Reserve]] he was recalled to active duty during the [[Korean War]]. Following completion of [[The Basic School|officer training]], he saw duty in [[Korea]] and then in [[Washington, D.C.]], before being inactivated. |
|||
==Publisher of ''The New York Times''== |
|||
In 1996, he married Allison Cowles, part of [[Cowles Publishing Company|the Cowles family]] which owns [[The Spokesman-Review]] of [[Spokane|Spokane, Wash]].<ref>Kershner, Jim. "Allison Cowles dies at 75". [[Spokesman-Review|The Spokesman-Review]]. April 25, 2010. http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/apr/25/allison-cowles-dies-75/</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/10/style/weddings-arthur-ochs-sulzberger-allison-stacey-cowles.html New York Times: "WEDDINGS;Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Allison Stacey Cowles"] March 10, 1996</ref> |
|||
Sulzberger became publisher of ''The New York Times'' in 1963, after the death of his sister Marian's husband, [[Orvil Dryfoos]], who had been publisher for less than two years. Sulzberger was 37 at the time, the youngest publisher in ''Times'' history. Prior to Dryfoos, Sulzberger's father, [[Arthur Hays Sulzberger]], and maternal grandfather, [[Adolph Ochs]], were the publishers, and also the chairs of the board of [[The New York Times Company]].<ref name="NYT-obit-2012-09-29"/> |
|||
In the 1960s Sulzberger built a large news-gathering staff at ''The Times''. He was its publisher when the newspaper won a [[Pulitzer Prize]] in 1972 for publishing [[The Pentagon Papers]]. He was elected a fellow of the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] in 1988.<ref name=AAAS>{{cite web|title=Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter S|url=http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterS.pdf|publisher=American Academy of Arts and Sciences|access-date=April 7, 2011}}</ref> His son Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. succeeded him as the newspaper's publisher in 1992. Sulzberger remained chairman of [[The New York Times Company]] until October 1997. |
|||
==Quotes about Sulzberger== |
|||
* "Eventually, Sulzberger, then in London, rejecting the views of some of his colleagues in senior management as well as the dire warnings of his outside counsel, made the call to accept the risks of publication rather than those of silence. On Sunday, June 13, [1971], the ''Times'' published the first in a series of seven articles about the [[Pentagon Papers]]. In retrospect, the decision may seem obvious, but it was by no means an easy one at the time, and it remains one for which Sulzberger deserves enormous credit." [[Floyd Abrams]].<ref>[[Floyd Abrams]], ''[[List of prominent cases argued by Floyd Abrams|Speaking Freely]]'', published by [[Viking Press]] (2005), Page 12.</ref> |
|||
== |
== Philanthropy == |
||
In addition to his work at ''[[The New York Times]]'', he also served as trustee from 1968 as well as chairman of the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] from 1987 to 1998.<ref>{{Cite web|title=In Memoriam: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/now-at-the-met/news/2012/arthur-ochs-sulzberger|date=October 1, 2012|website=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|access-date=May 22, 2020}}</ref> He was elected as a life trustee of [[Columbia University]] in 1967.<ref>{{Cite news|date=February 7, 1967|title=Life Trustee Elected at Columbia|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/02/07/archives/life-trustee-elected-at-columbia.html|access-date=May 22, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=In Memoriam: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, CC'51.|url=https://www.college.columbia.edu/news/memoriam-arthur-ochs-sulzberger-cc51|date=October 1, 2012|website=Columbia College|access-date=May 22, 2020}}</ref> |
|||
* ''Behind the Times: Inside the New New York Times'', by Edwin Diamond. Villard Books. |
|||
* ''The Trust: The Private and Powerful Family Behind The New York Times,'' by Alex S. Jones, Susan E. Tifft. Back Bay Books (2000), ISBN 0-316-83631-1. |
|||
==Personal life and death== |
|||
==Notes== |
|||
Sulzberger was married three times. In 1948, he married Barbara Winslow Grant<ref>''[https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/09/obituaries/barbara-winslow-grant-mother-of-times-chairman-dies-at-90.html?emc=edit_th_190310&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=686341800310 Barbara Winslow Grant, Mother of Times Chairman, Dies at 90]'', The New York Times, New York Edition, March 10, 2019, p.A23</ref>(of mostly [[Scottish American|Scottish]] and [[English American|English]] heritage)<ref>[http://www.americanancestors.org/arthur-ochs-sulzberger-jr/ New England Historic Genealogical Society - American Ancestors: #42 Royal Descents, Notable Kin, and Printed Sources: Yankee Ancestors, Mayflower Lines, and Royal Descents and Connections of Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141114205551/http://www.americanancestors.org/arthur-ochs-sulzberger-jr/ |date=November 14, 2014 }} by Gary Boyd Roberts; dated December 1, 1999</ref> in a civil ceremony at her parents' home in [[Purchase, New York]].<ref>''Barbara W. Grant Is Bride In Garden" New York Times'', (July 3, 1948), p. 7</ref> They had two children: [[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.]]; and Karen Alden Sulzberger (married to author [[Eric Lax]]); before divorcing in 1956.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=AOkCAAAAMBAJ&dq=sulzberger+episcopalian&pg=PA30 New Yorker Magazine: "Old Times, New Times" by Edwin Diamond] September 30, 1991</ref><ref name=NYTWeddingKaren>{{Cite web|title=Karen A. Sulzberger Is Wed To Eric Martin Arthur Lax|work=[[New York Times]]|date= October 24, 1982|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/10/24/style/karen-a-sulzberger-is-wed-to-eric-martin-arthur-lax.html}}</ref> |
|||
{{reflist}} |
|||
In December 1956, he married Carol Fox Fuhrman; they had one daughter, Cynthia Fox Sulzberger Green, before his wife died in 1995.<ref name="NYT-obit-2012-09-29"/><ref name=NYTWeddingCynthis>{{Cite web|title=WEDDINGS; Cynthia Sulzberger, Steven Green|work=[[New York Times]]|date=June 3, 2001|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/03/style/weddings-cynthia-sulzberger-steven-green.html}}</ref> He also adopted Fox's daughter from a previous marriage, Cathy Sulzberger (who married Joseph George Perpich).<ref name=NYTEngagePerpich>{{Cite web|title=Dr. J. G. Perpich Fiance Of Cathy J. Sulzberger|work=[[New York Times]]|date=October 27, 1974|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/10/27/archives/dr-j-g-perpich-fiance-of-cathy-j-sulzberger.html}}</ref><ref name=NYTWeddingPerpich>{{Cite web|title=Cathy J. Sulzberger Is Married|work=[[New York Times]]|date=December 15, 1974|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/15/archives/cathy-j-sulzberger-is-married.html}}</ref> In 1996, he married Allison Stacey Cowles, widow of William H. Cowles, 3rd (died 1992), who was part of [[Cowles Publishing Company|the Cowles family]] that owns ''[[The Spokesman-Review]]'' of [[Spokane, Washington]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Allison Cowles dies at 75 {{!}} The Spokesman-Review |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/apr/25/allison-cowles-dies-75/ |access-date=March 22, 2022 |website=www.spokesman.com}}</ref><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/10/style/weddings-arthur-ochs-sulzberger-allison-stacey-cowles.html New York Times: "WEDDINGS;Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Allison Stacey Cowles"] March 10, 1996</ref> |
|||
In 2005, the [[Newspaper Association of America]] (NAA) honored Sulzberger with the [[Katharine Graham]] Lifetime Achievement Award.<ref>{{ cite news | url= https://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/20/business/media/former-times-publisher-wins-newspaper-award.html | title= Former Times Publisher Wins Newspaper Award | date=April 4, 2005 | work= The New York Times | access-date=November 11, 2015}}</ref> Sulzberger dedicated the [[Wellesley College]] pub, aptly named "Punch's Alley", in honor of his wife, Allison, a class of 1955 Wellesley alum.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/punchsalley|title=Punch's Alley|website=www.facebook.com|access-date=August 14, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/reslife/dining/facilities/node/6237 |title=Punch's Alley | Wellesley College |access-date=November 20, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129021725/http://www.wellesley.edu/reslife/dining/facilities/node/6237 |archive-date=November 29, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
|||
Sulzberger died at his home in [[Southampton, New York]] on September 29, 2012, at the age of 86.<ref name="NYT-obit-2012-09-29"> |
|||
{{ cite news | url= https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/nyregion/arthur-o-sulzberger-publisher-who-transformed-times-dies-at-86.html | title= Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, 1926 – 2012: Publisher Who Transformed The Times for New Era | last = Haberman | first= Clyde | date= September 29, 2012 | work= The New York Times | access-date= September 29, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-19772828|title=New York Times ex-chief Arthur Sulzberger Sr dies |access-date=September 29, 2012 | work=BBC News|date=September 29, 2012}}</ref> |
|||
===Publication of the Pentagon Papers=== |
|||
On June 13, 1971, ''The New York Times'' published the first of seven articles on the ''[[Pentagon Papers]]''. According to [[Floyd Abrams]], Sulzberger "made the call to accept the risks rather than those of silence", adding that "In retrospect, the decision may seem obvious, but it was by no means an easy one at the time, and it remains one for which Sulzberger deserves enormous credit."<ref>[[Floyd Abrams]], ''[[List of prominent cases argued by Floyd Abrams|Speaking Freely]]'', published by [[Viking Press]] (2005), Page 12.</ref> |
|||
== References == |
|||
{{Reflist}} |
|||
==Sources== |
|||
* ''Behind the Times: Inside the New New York Times'', by Edwin Diamond. Villard Books. |
|||
* ''The Trust: The Private and Powerful Family Behind The New York Times,'' by Alex S. Jones, Susan E. Tifft. Back Bay Books (2000), {{ISBN|0-316-83631-1}}. |
|||
==External links== |
|||
*[https://library.metmuseum.org/record=b1712941~S1, Oral history interview with Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, 1998 Aug. 5- Oct. 14] from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Archives, New York. |
|||
{{s-start}} |
{{s-start}} |
||
{{s-bus}} |
{{s-bus}} |
||
{{succession box | |
{{succession box | |
||
before=[[Orvil Dryfoos]] | |
|||
title=[[The New York Times Company|The New York Times Company Publisher]] | |
|||
years=1963–1992 | |
|||
after=[[Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.]]| |
|||
}} |
}} |
||
{{s-end}} |
{{s-end}} |
||
{{The New York Times}} |
|||
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> |
|||
| NAME = Sulzberger, Arthur Ochs |
|||
{{Authority control}} |
|||
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES = |
|||
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = |
|||
| DATE OF BIRTH = February 5, 1926 |
|||
| PLACE OF BIRTH = |
|||
| DATE OF DEATH = |
|||
| PLACE OF DEATH = |
|||
}} |
|||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sulzberger, Arthur Ochs}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sulzberger, Arthur Ochs}} |
||
[[Category:1926 births]] |
[[Category:1926 births]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:2012 deaths]] |
||
[[Category:American businesspeople]] |
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:20th-century American newspaper publishers (people)]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Jewish American military personnel]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II]] |
||
[[Category:United States Marine Corps officers]] |
|||
[[Category:American newspaper publishers (people)]] |
|||
[[Category:American people of German-Jewish descent]] |
[[Category:American people of German-Jewish descent]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Columbia College (New York) alumni]] |
||
[[Category:The New York Times corporate staff]] |
|||
[[Category:Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] |
[[Category:Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] |
||
[[Category:Sulzberger family]] |
|||
[[Category:The New York Times corporate staff]] |
|||
[[Category:The New York Times publishers]] |
|||
[[de:Arthur Ochs Sulzberger]] |
|||
[[Category:United States Marine Corps officers]] |
|||
[[fr:Arthur Ochs Sulzberger]] |
|||
[[Category:Loomis Chaffee School alumni]] |
|||
[[Category:21st-century American Jews]] |
Latest revision as of 05:15, 28 October 2024
Arthur Ochs Sulzberger | |
---|---|
Born | New York City, U.S. | February 5, 1926
Died | September 29, 2012 Southampton, New York, U.S. | (aged 86)
Other names | Punch Sulzberger |
Alma mater | Columbia University (BA) |
Occupation | Newspaper publisher |
Years active | 1963–1997 |
Spouses | Barbara Winslow Grant
(m. 1948; div. 1956)Carol Fox Fuhrman
(m. 1956; died 1995)Allison S. Cowles
(m. 1996; died 2010) |
Children | 4, including Arthur Jr. |
Parent(s) | Arthur Hays Sulzberger Iphigene Bertha Ochs |
Relatives |
|
Awards | Pulitzer Prize |
Military career | |
Allegiance | United States |
Service | United States Marine Corps |
Years of service | 1944–1952 |
Battles / wars |
Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Sr. (February 5, 1926 – September 29, 2012) was an American publisher and a businessman. Born into a prominent media and publishing family, Sulzberger became publisher of The New York Times in 1963 and chairman of the board of The New York Times Company in 1973. Sulzberger relinquished to his son, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr., the office of publisher in 1992, and the board chairmanship in 1997.
Early life and education
[edit]Sulzberger was born to a Jewish family on February 5, 1926, in New York City, the son of Arthur Hays Sulzberger and Iphigene Bertha Ochs (daughter of Adolph Ochs, the former publisher and owner of The New York Times and the Chattanooga Times[1] and granddaughter of Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise).[2][3] He had a sister named Judy,[4] which gave rise to his nickname, "Punch", in reference to the British traditional puppet show, Punch and Judy. Sulzberger graduated from the Loomis Chaffee School and then enlisted into the United States Marine Corps during World War II, serving from 1944 to 1946, in the Pacific Theater. He earned a B.A. degree in English and history in 1951 at Columbia University. As a student, he roomed with composer Philip Springer in John Jay Hall.[5] As a member of the Marine Forces Reserve he was recalled to active duty during the Korean War. Following completion of officer training, he saw duty in Korea and then in Washington, D.C., before being inactivated.
Publisher of The New York Times
[edit]Sulzberger became publisher of The New York Times in 1963, after the death of his sister Marian's husband, Orvil Dryfoos, who had been publisher for less than two years. Sulzberger was 37 at the time, the youngest publisher in Times history. Prior to Dryfoos, Sulzberger's father, Arthur Hays Sulzberger, and maternal grandfather, Adolph Ochs, were the publishers, and also the chairs of the board of The New York Times Company.[6]
In the 1960s Sulzberger built a large news-gathering staff at The Times. He was its publisher when the newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize in 1972 for publishing The Pentagon Papers. He was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1988.[7] His son Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. succeeded him as the newspaper's publisher in 1992. Sulzberger remained chairman of The New York Times Company until October 1997.
Philanthropy
[edit]In addition to his work at The New York Times, he also served as trustee from 1968 as well as chairman of the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1987 to 1998.[8] He was elected as a life trustee of Columbia University in 1967.[9][10]
Personal life and death
[edit]Sulzberger was married three times. In 1948, he married Barbara Winslow Grant[11](of mostly Scottish and English heritage)[12] in a civil ceremony at her parents' home in Purchase, New York.[13] They had two children: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.; and Karen Alden Sulzberger (married to author Eric Lax); before divorcing in 1956.[14][15]
In December 1956, he married Carol Fox Fuhrman; they had one daughter, Cynthia Fox Sulzberger Green, before his wife died in 1995.[6][16] He also adopted Fox's daughter from a previous marriage, Cathy Sulzberger (who married Joseph George Perpich).[17][18] In 1996, he married Allison Stacey Cowles, widow of William H. Cowles, 3rd (died 1992), who was part of the Cowles family that owns The Spokesman-Review of Spokane, Washington.[19][20]
In 2005, the Newspaper Association of America (NAA) honored Sulzberger with the Katharine Graham Lifetime Achievement Award.[21] Sulzberger dedicated the Wellesley College pub, aptly named "Punch's Alley", in honor of his wife, Allison, a class of 1955 Wellesley alum.[22][23]
Sulzberger died at his home in Southampton, New York on September 29, 2012, at the age of 86.[6][24]
Publication of the Pentagon Papers
[edit]On June 13, 1971, The New York Times published the first of seven articles on the Pentagon Papers. According to Floyd Abrams, Sulzberger "made the call to accept the risks rather than those of silence", adding that "In retrospect, the decision may seem obvious, but it was by no means an easy one at the time, and it remains one for which Sulzberger deserves enormous credit."[25]
References
[edit]- ^ New York Times: "Iphigene Ochs Sulzberger Is Dead; Central Figure in Times's History" February 27, 1990
- ^ American Jewish Archives: "A Finding Aid to the Isaac Mayer Wise Papers. 1838–1931 – Manuscript Collection No. 436" retrieved September 27, 2015
- ^ May, Max Benjamin (1992). Isaac Mayer Wise: The Founder of American Judaism; a Biography. Littman Library Of Jewish Civilization. p. 380. ISBN 978-0197100592.
- ^ "Arthur Ochs Sulzberger dies at 86; former New York Times publisher". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
- ^ ""Santa Baby" Changed My Life". Columbia Magazine. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ a b c Haberman, Clyde (September 29, 2012). "Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, 1926 – 2012: Publisher Who Transformed The Times for New Era". The New York Times. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
- ^ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter S" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
- ^ "In Memoriam: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. October 1, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ "Life Trustee Elected at Columbia". The New York Times. February 7, 1967. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ "In Memoriam: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, CC'51". Columbia College. October 1, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ Barbara Winslow Grant, Mother of Times Chairman, Dies at 90, The New York Times, New York Edition, March 10, 2019, p.A23
- ^ New England Historic Genealogical Society - American Ancestors: #42 Royal Descents, Notable Kin, and Printed Sources: Yankee Ancestors, Mayflower Lines, and Royal Descents and Connections of Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Archived November 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine by Gary Boyd Roberts; dated December 1, 1999
- ^ Barbara W. Grant Is Bride In Garden" New York Times, (July 3, 1948), p. 7
- ^ New Yorker Magazine: "Old Times, New Times" by Edwin Diamond September 30, 1991
- ^ "Karen A. Sulzberger Is Wed To Eric Martin Arthur Lax". New York Times. October 24, 1982.
- ^ "WEDDINGS; Cynthia Sulzberger, Steven Green". New York Times. June 3, 2001.
- ^ "Dr. J. G. Perpich Fiance Of Cathy J. Sulzberger". New York Times. October 27, 1974.
- ^ "Cathy J. Sulzberger Is Married". New York Times. December 15, 1974.
- ^ "Allison Cowles dies at 75 | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
- ^ New York Times: "WEDDINGS;Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Allison Stacey Cowles" March 10, 1996
- ^ "Former Times Publisher Wins Newspaper Award". The New York Times. April 4, 2005. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
- ^ "Punch's Alley". www.facebook.com. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
- ^ "Punch's Alley | Wellesley College". Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
- ^ "New York Times ex-chief Arthur Sulzberger Sr dies". BBC News. September 29, 2012. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
- ^ Floyd Abrams, Speaking Freely, published by Viking Press (2005), Page 12.
Sources
[edit]- Behind the Times: Inside the New New York Times, by Edwin Diamond. Villard Books.
- The Trust: The Private and Powerful Family Behind The New York Times, by Alex S. Jones, Susan E. Tifft. Back Bay Books (2000), ISBN 0-316-83631-1.
External links
[edit]- Oral history interview with Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, 1998 Aug. 5- Oct. 14 from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Archives, New York.
- 1926 births
- 2012 deaths
- 20th-century American businesspeople
- 20th-century American newspaper publishers (people)
- Jewish American military personnel
- United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War
- United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II
- American people of German-Jewish descent
- Columbia College (New York) alumni
- Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
- Sulzberger family
- The New York Times corporate staff
- The New York Times publishers
- United States Marine Corps officers
- Loomis Chaffee School alumni
- 21st-century American Jews