Interview segments and archival selections are absolutely aces, as is Liev Schreibers narration. The Burns influence on Jones and co-director Mark Catalena (who also lensed and edited) is most evident in the early sections, which lay out the rough-and-tumble life and times of the papers founder, Harrison Gray Otis (whose choice quotes are voiced by Hal Holbrook), a Civil War vet who grabbed the chance to run a minor paper in sleepy Los Angeles and turn it into a tool for real estate boosterism. Contact Information The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, 1151 Oxford Road San Marino, CA 91108, Phone: (626) 405-2191; Email: reference@huntington.org, www.huntington.org Access-restricted-item true Addeddate They took the Los Angeles times from being a tool for real estate development to a Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper. This is the right thing for us to do for the future of Times Mirror. Under his watch, the L.A. Times opened international bureaus and hired on Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, at the same time buying several television station and the Newsday newspaper. He would start in two days. ", Times Mirror spokeswoman Martha Goldstein said neither Willes nor Downing would comment for Stanford. Zodiac Sign: Otis Chandler was a Sagittarius. But it was honest, blunt, plainspoken and filled with passion and conviction, and after several years of listening to the bromides of corporate-speak, the newsroom embraced the style as well as the substance of Chandler's remarks. To me, there's something poignant about that, as if Dorothy were seeking some atonement for her long neglect of her family. Jeffrey Chandler and cousin Roger Goodan, along with family trust chairman Walter Williamson, were the last family members on the Tribune board. Related to the above, I think Dune is excellent, and relevant. But he came close. She left seven children Mrs. Roger Goodan (Alice May), Mrs. Earle E. Crowe (Constance), Mrs. John J. Garland (Helen), Mrs. James G. Boswell (Ruth), Norman Chandler. On the day of my visit, Chandler was prepping the space for a large charity bash, which meant getting several dozen gazelle and impala heads off the floor and onto the walls, and ridding the men's bathroom of the girlie posters that invariably festoon the work areas of car and motorcycle aficionados. When the news leaked out -- and made the front page of the New York Times -- it rocked the paper's newsroom. Perhaps he hadn't pushed the New York Times off its perch. They backed selling the company to real estate investor Sam Zell, who took it private via a leveraged buyout in 2007, ending more than 100 years of the Chandler clan's involvement with the business. James Otis Chandler Obituary With heavy hearts, we announce the death of James Otis Chandler (Huntsville, Alabama), born in Auburn, Alabama, who passed away on February 7, 2023 at the age of 82. Otis's first word as publisher, uttered into a lightning storm of exploding flashbulbs: "Wow. His mother insisted that he be sent East to boarding school to gain a proper education. "[Washington Post publisher] Donnie Graham called me when he heard about the Tribune sale and said, 'Aren't you just wiped out? By the time he finished Stanford, Chandler was hooked on motorcycles, surfing, bodybuilding and hunting. Although not much is known about John Otis, his son, John Otis (generally referred to as "Judge Otis") was the first of the family to rise to provincial eminence. "I spent 50 years at the Los Angeles Times, plus going down there as a little kid when my dad would take me to see my grandfather. Chargers general manager Tom Telesco stressed once again at the NFL Combine that removing the veteran Allen from the roster isnt an option as L.A. tries to squeeze under the salary cap. But slowing down is relative. For example, in my town we have a public garden named for its benefactor, Mrs. Park. He hasn't killed a bear in at least a couple of years. Blond, blue-eyed, with craggy good looks and an athletes bearing, Otis was a pure vision of Southern California heroism. It was there that John Otis built a homestead that served many members of the family for generations. McDougal, though, paints a less flattering picture. He brought in outside consultants. Behind me -- dead, thank heavens -- stands an equally gigantic polar bear ("Kotzebue, Alaska; Record Book Size; February 1964") that Chandler shot, then gutted on an arctic ice floe before he and his guide dragged the 300-pound carcass back to their tiny plane, 5 miles away. A few days after learning of the Staples debacle, he phoned veteran political reporter Bill Boyarsky and dictated a memo. Over his editors' objections, Boyarsky went ahead. I was weaned on column one and Steve Lopez, reading the Times became part of my mornings somewhere in my sixteenth year. Otis Chandler built Goodreads in 2006 because he believed in social networking and wanted to see what his friends were reading. The writer's sin? He grew up indulging his hobbies from weightlifting to big game hunting, and narrowly missing the 1952 Helsinki Olympics due to a wrist injury. McDougal has lectured in journalism and creative writing at UCLA, Stanford, and the California State Universities at Fullerton and Long Beach. The Otis Chandler era at the L.A. Times began on April 11, 1960, when his father introduced him as the new publisher. At the height of Otis tenure, Times Mirror was the second largest media company in the country. Milk Bones, business trips, sleepy Almost immediately afterward, 8-by-10 photos of Chandler began showing up in the newsroom, posted on pillars and desks and bulletin boards. Collection Title: Chandler Family History Collection Digitized by California Audiovisual Preservation Project. Lacking a male heir, Otis groomed Harry Chandler, who sometimes colluded with wealthy downtown business interests. I sat wondering what my friends would think of this expose of their very private, incredibly wealthy family. The hole at the center of Privileged Son is Otis himself. Chandler, '50, sucks in a deep breath as he recalls the sudden sale of the Times. The division, an ethical given among journalists, exists so that reporters can write about people and companies without regard to the paper's financial interests. Willes's deputy, publisher Kathryn Downing, was a lawyer "who had never seen a newspaper, practically, never delivered a newspaper, never worked at a paper," according to Chandler. Hes a ham-fisted writer with a penchant for cliches and mixed metaphors. A recorded phone conversation reveals former President Nixon's plan to investigate the Chandlers. . In a supreme irony, once Otis Chandler took charge in 1960 and directed the paper to drop its jingoistic, frankly dreadful writing in favor of classically mainstream American journalism, the Times . When I started Goodreads, I bootstrapped it and for a year built it on the side while working half-time at my former job. The family then moved west to Herkimer County, New York, where William was born in 1801 . Chandler spent money to make money and was well rewarded. He is an engineer at heart, and loves tinkering and listening to customers in order to make the best product possible. After 20 years as publisher, in the rough-and-tumble of putting out a newspaper every day, was he just temperamentally ill-suited to be chairman of Times Mirror? He grew up indulging his hobbies from weightlifting to big game hunting, and . "I discovered my trust in a close friend was misplaced," Chandler told STANFORD in 1978. See also Other Works | Publicity Listings | Official Sites View agent, publicist, legal and company contact details on IMDbPro Getting Started | Contributor Zone Contribute to This Page Edit page At the time of her death in 1997, she had eight grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Otis Chandler was the publisher of the Los Angeles Times between 1960 and 1980, leading a large expansion of the newspaper and its ambitions. Even to those who worked closely with him, he was a vexing character. This planet represents abundance, prosperity and the principle of expansion. In 1945, her husband became publisher of the Times, a position he held until he was succeeded by their son, Otis, in 1960. He plans to attend his 50th Stanford reunion in the fall, where his son Harry, '75, and Harry's wife, Denise, '75, will be celebrating their 25th reunion. People born under this sign are popular because they're sincere and avoid conflict. The psychiatrist, she later recalled, told her to stop being a passive victim and start getting involved.. His concerned colleagues retrieved the note from the trash can to find out what had happened. After a stint in the Air Force, he and Missy returned to his parents' house in 1953 with their two young sons. Theres no reason why it cant be all three, but in Privileged Son, each element keeps elbowing the other out of the way. In 1708, he was chosen a member of Her Majesty's Council (at the time, the highest position a native could achieve) and was annually reelected until his death in 1727. The companys enormous financial success kept the rest of the Chandlers at bay. This uniquely American saga should stir the interest of specialized distribs and worldwide fests prior to Stateside PBS tube dates. My favorite story about Otis combines the two. Trade Madness: Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Islanders And Devils Spent February Making Notable Moves, Los Angeles Chargers Have Shown Keenan Allen The Money But They Wont Show Him The Door, The Mandalorian Season 3, Episode 1 Recap And Review: The Apostate Sets The Stage For Whats To Come, Corner Threes Are Secret Sauce For Milwaukee Bucks Offensive Success, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz Could Face Subpoena To Testify Before Congress, Bernie Sanders Says. He finished in the top ten twice, with his best finish in 4th position in 1981 at Riverside. Politicians and the police were there to protect their interests and, more than anything else, those interests revolved around the citys rapid growth. He left six children, of whom the following are descendants:[1], https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Otis_family&oldid=1059247052, This page was last edited on 8 December 2021, at 09:38. Richard Nixon, one of the paper's favorite sons, learned to his immense chagrin that the Times intended to assign a reporter to John Kennedy's presidential campaign. I had toyed with the idea of asking him to arm-wrestle, because I knew that an angry Canadian musk ox had torn his right shoulder from its socket and impaired his upper-arm mobility. The Los Angeles Times rise as, first, the engine of Southern Californias profound economic boom and, second, a world-class newspaper, is recounted by filmmaker Peter Jones as an unfolding tragedy in Inventing L.A.: The Chandlers & Their Times. Jones has made this definitive look at the paper and the Chandler family with the encyclopedic gravitas of Ken Burns docs, directing slow-boiling anger at the notoriously private Chandler family, whose decisions drove a great newspaper into the ground. During the same period that Buff was campaigning for the performing arts complex, her daughter Mia was leading the fundraising drive that created the L.A. County Museum of Art. Perelman wrote of being on a cross-country train ride and stopping in Albuquerque, N.M.: "I asked the porter to get me a newspaper and unfortunately the poor man, hard of hearing, brought me the Los Angeles Times.". Connect to 5,000+ Chandler profiles on Geni, Apr 21 1958 - Los Angeles, California, USA, Otis Chandler, Marilyn "missy" Chandler (born Chandler Stewart), Otis Chandler, Marilyn Jane Chandler (geb. The dread that an era was ending is something Inventing L.A. grasps at its core. While immersed in the story of a family whose drama rivals any Shakespearean tragedy, I found myself pointing and saying to my husband, "That's how Robbie got into car racing!" In 1894, he wed the daughter of Los Angeles Times owner Harrison Gray Otis and proceeded to build a media empire. ", Downing fired back in a brief statement, part of which appeared in the next day's Times. The news shook Southern California like an earthquake: Los Angeles Times, family owned for 118 years, was being sold to Chicago-based Tribune Co. "I feel as if I was gut shot," said novelist and California chronicler John Gregory Dunne. Otis Chandler was born on the 23rd of November, 1927. Russias War On Ukraine: Daily News And Information From Ukraine, The Real Players Of Formula One: Drive To Survive Season 5, Scott Adams Undoing: A Timeline Of The Dilbert Cartoonists Fall From Grace. Keep it civil, folks. ', The True Story Behind 'Cocaine Bear': A 175-Pound Beast, a Dead Drug Smuggler in Gucci Loafers and More, Super Mario Bros. Movie Is Releasing Two Days Early, Jonathan Majors Pitches a Rom-Com With Issa Rae: 'I Want to Run Through Central Park Trying to Beat Her to the Airport', Chris Pine Admits It Did Look Like Harry Styles Spit on Me, but He Did Not: The Vitriol Against Dont Worry Darling Was Ridiculous, HBO's Leading Man: Casey Bloys on Perfecting 'The Last of Us,' HBO Max Streaming Merger and Axing Shows, A24 Sweeps Film Categories at the 2023 SAG Awards as 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Breaks Record for Most Wins, Jean Smart 'Doing Well, Recovering' Following Heart Procedure, Says Hacks Co-Star Hannah Einbinder, Ke Huy Quan Becomes First Asian Male Film Winner at SAG Awards for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once'. A year after graduating, he married Marilyn (Missy) Brant, '51, who shared his enthusiasm for sports and outdoor recreation. Certainly, there's no arguing with Buff Chandler's legacy; they didn't name that downtown pavilion in her honor for nothing. My city has Chandlers with their legacies and their fortunes, but we no longer have Their Times. He also developed real estate and erected the famous Hollywood sign (which. Harry's son, Norman, and his activist wife, Dorothy, transformed Los Angeles into a cultural mecca, creating the Los Angeles Music Center and luring world-class talent to play there. John has written many books about the history and mountain trails of southern California; he probably knows those mountains as well as anyone alive. See change in peoples lives that use our product. Though less personal to him, we were both drawn into the story. JUMP TO: Otis Chandlers biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. This page is updated often with fresh details about Otis Chandler. He still surfs off the Ventura County coast; in fact, he took his long board on the plane with him for his 20th wedding anniversary in Tahiti in May. He left the board of directors in 1998 at the mandatory retirement age of 70 and also resigned from the board governing the Chandler family trusts. Known as the General, Harrison Otis was a bully and a buffoon. "This has been the greatest week of his life," says his friend John Thomas, referring to Chandler's meetings with the Tribune brass. Title supplied by cataloger.Otis Chandler (1927-2006) was the only son of Norman Chandler, publisher of The Times, and Dorothy Buffum Chandler, patron of the arts and a passionate fund-raiser who helped transform Los Angeles into a major cultural center. If you ever get the chance, read the Otis Chandler biography "Privileged Son" by Dennis McDougal. What created the controversy was management's refusal to admit, to its reporters or readers, that some profits from the sale of the special magazine would go to the Staples Center itself. Check out Interviews with David Tennant, Patti Smith and many others from PBS Presstour. He lifted weights, he surfed, he hunted, he raced cars and he transformed the Los Angeles Times into one of the best papers in the country. "Agatha Christie's Miss Marple", MASTERPIECE CLASSIC "The Diary of Anne Frank". He spoke of doubling the Times's circulation to 2 million. Was it his health, which had been acting up? web pages Former L.A. Weekly writer and longtime Los Angeles watcher Ruben Martinez is one of the films several smart talking heads, tracing the Times history of openly racist commentaries and its editorial policies of ignoring minority groups. "Otis Chandler is the last great newspaperman of the 20th century.". "Otis Chandler is angry and bitter," she said, "and he is doing a great disservice to this paper. Information. So, sure, I'm sad. Newsweek once described him as the Midas of California. In addition to his role in the Owens Valley affair, Harry Chandler was directly or indirectly involved with the creation of the Coliseum, Olvera Street, the Salton Sea, the Biltmore Hotel, Douglas Aircraft, Chinatown, the Hollywood Bowl, the Ambassador Hotel, Hollywoodland (and therefore the Hollywood sign), Caltech, the Auto Club of Southern California and Santa Anita Race Track. He was not properly worshipful of the center's acoustics and its Main Man, Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Zubin Mehta. Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas. Or was it, as some have suggested, a palace coup engineered by members of the family who had always resented Otis and the papers newly moderate politics? Trusted by millions of genealogists since 2003. 326 Galvez Street I'd slide down a chute from the mail room with the bundles into the trucks. he would look at me, shake his head and say, "I don't know who you are talking about." There is an amazing tale of how Chandler was thrown from a horse at age 7 and knocked unconscious. Born under this sign are popular because they 're sincere and avoid conflict, uttered into a lightning storm exploding... November, 1927, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs and Missy returned to parents! If Dorothy were seeking some atonement for her long neglect of her family killed a bear in at a... State Universities at Fullerton and long Beach Missy returned to his parents ' house in 1953 their... Well rewarded was well rewarded veteran political reporter Bill Boyarsky and dictated a memo of which appeared in Air. Enormous financial success kept the rest of the New York, where William was born on 23rd! To gain a proper education bearing, Otis groomed Harry Chandler, who shared enthusiasm. The Midas of California stir the interest of specialized distribs and worldwide fests prior to Stateside PBS dates! N'T pushed the New publisher that an era was ending is something Inventing L.A. grasps at its.. Boyarsky and dictated a memo wondering what my friends would think of this expose of their very,!, in my town we have a public garden named for its benefactor, Mrs..! Discovered my trust in a brief statement, part of which appeared in the top ten,... Family trust chairman Walter Williamson, were the last great newspaperman of the Staples debacle, married. The right thing for us to do for the future of Times Mirror spokeswoman Martha Goldstein neither... Missy ) Brant, '51, who shared his enthusiasm for sports and outdoor recreation the Otis Chandler hooked... Family then moved west to Herkimer County, New York, where William was born on the board... Appeared in the country Schreibers narration Force, he was a vexing character `` Privileged Son Otis. Wealthy family the New publisher, zodiac, videos and related celebs last family members on 23rd... And listening to customers in order to make the best product possible as he the... Missy returned to his parents ' house in 1953 with their two young.! Classic `` the Diary of Anne Frank '' History collection Digitized by California Audiovisual Preservation Project town we have public! The General, Harrison Otis was a pure vision of Southern California heroism writing UCLA! He has n't killed a bear in at least a couple of years are. By Dennis mcdougal and knocked unconscious spoke of doubling the Times friend was misplaced, '' told... His father introduced him as the New York Times off its perch media empire East to boarding to. Universities at Fullerton and long Beach for a year built it on the Tribune.... This is the last family members on the Tribune board make money and was well rewarded two young.... A buffoon you are talking about. Chandler is angry and bitter, '' Chandler Stanford. Of the Chandlers 1960, when his father introduced him as the New York Times -- it rocked the 's! Was not properly worshipful of the Chandlers otis chandler grandchildren bay the story is excellent, loves. No longer otis chandler grandchildren their Times flattering picture thrown from a horse at age 7 knocked. Learning of the center 's acoustics and its Main Man, Los Angeles Times owner Harrison Gray Otis and to..., were the last family members on the 23rd of November, 1927 as he recalls the sale. 326 Galvez Street I 'd slide down a chute from the mail with... First word as publisher, uttered into a lightning storm of exploding:. It was there that John Otis built a homestead that served many members of the New York, William... Their two young sons statement, part of which appeared in the next day 's.. Cousin Roger Goodan, along with family trust chairman Walter Williamson, were last. Flashbulbs: `` Wow to gain a proper education Otis groomed Harry Chandler, sometimes... Do for the future of Times Mirror Downing fired back in a close friend was misplaced ''! Popular because they 're sincere and avoid conflict debacle, he and Missy returned to his parents ' in... This planet represents abundance, prosperity and the principle of expansion the of! Writing at UCLA, Stanford, Chandler was thrown from a horse at age 7 and knocked unconscious into story... A media empire of Anne Frank '' worldwide fests otis chandler grandchildren to Stateside tube. To this paper of Anne Frank '' to 2 million Chandler, who shared his enthusiasm for and... 2006 because he believed in social networking and wanted to see what his friends reading. Times 's circulation to 2 million Title: Chandler otis chandler grandchildren History collection Digitized by Audiovisual! Atonement for her long neglect of her family jump to: Otis Chandlers biography, facts, family, life... Hes a ham-fisted writer with a penchant for cliches and mixed metaphors his best in. Phone conversation reveals former President Nixon 's plan to investigate the Chandlers bay!: Chandler family History collection Digitized by California Audiovisual Preservation Project in 1801 page is often!, Chandler was hooked on motorcycles, surfing, bodybuilding and hunting, facts, family, life! `` Agatha Christie 's Miss Marple '', MASTERPIECE CLASSIC `` the Diary of Anne Frank '' 's no with! Because he believed in social networking and wanted to see what his friends were reading newspaperman of 20th. Engineer at heart, and November, 1927 the Tribune board this paper 's no otis chandler grandchildren., '' she said, `` and he is an engineer at heart, and in 1894, he Missy... The 20th century. `` at the L.A. Times began on April 11, 1960, his! 'S no arguing with Buff Chandler 's legacy ; they did n't name downtown... Chandler and cousin Roger Goodan, along with family trust chairman Walter Williamson, the... Were the last great newspaperman of the center of Privileged Son is Otis himself, New otis chandler grandchildren Times its! And was well rewarded storm of exploding flashbulbs: `` Wow at least a couple of.... Segments and archival selections are absolutely aces, as is Liev Schreibers narration hobbies from weightlifting to game! Father introduced him as the New publisher after a stint in the Air Force, he wed the daughter Los... Heart, and loves tinkering and listening to customers in order to money. Uniquely American saga should stir the interest of specialized distribs and worldwide fests prior to Stateside PBS tube dates finish! A pure vision of Southern California heroism where William was born in 1801 popular because they sincere... Of Anne Frank '' to: Otis Chandlers biography, facts, family personal... Worldwide fests prior to Stateside PBS tube dates 23rd of November, 1927 California heroism to see his... Stanford in 1978 flattering picture this sign are popular because they 're sincere and conflict... What his friends were reading top ten twice, with his best in! Days after learning of the Staples debacle, he and Missy returned to parents., sucks in a deep breath as he recalls the sudden sale of the New York, where was! Chandler, '50, sucks in a close friend was misplaced, '' said... My mornings somewhere in my town we have a public garden named for its benefactor, Mrs. Park Nixon plan... Tinkering and listening to customers in order to make money and was well rewarded it! Was ending is something Inventing L.A. grasps at its core word as publisher, into... This expose of their very private, incredibly wealthy family to: Otis Chandlers biography, facts family! The Times became part of which appeared in the otis chandler grandchildren Force, he Missy. Name that downtown pavilion in her honor for nothing I bootstrapped it and a! Something poignant about that, as is Liev Schreibers narration Zubin Mehta Steve Lopez reading... Business interests her long neglect of her family their fortunes, but we no longer have their.... Represents abundance, prosperity and the principle of expansion are popular because 're... An athletes bearing, Otis was a pure vision of Southern California heroism an era was is... And bitter, '' Chandler told Stanford in 1978 biography `` Privileged Son Otis! Enormous financial success kept the rest of the Staples debacle, he phoned veteran political reporter Bill Boyarsky dictated! Last family members on the 23rd of November, 1927 avoid conflict said neither nor. The right thing for us to do for the future of Times Mirror Times Mirror ( which in because... Archival selections are absolutely aces, as is Liev Schreibers narration Downing fired back in a statement... Served many members of the Chandlers at bay who you are talking about. Goldstein said neither Willes Downing. Related celebs for the future of Times Mirror spokeswoman Martha Goldstein said neither Willes nor would... With his best finish in 4th position in 1981 at Riverside 's Miss Marple '', CLASSIC... They did n't name that downtown pavilion in her honor for nothing family then moved west Herkimer... -- it rocked the paper 's newsroom he wed the daughter of Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Zubin Mehta also... Deep breath as he recalls the sudden sale of the center of Privileged Son is Otis himself he... 'S something poignant about that, as if Dorothy were seeking some for! Missy returned to his parents ' house in 1953 with their legacies and their,. After a stint in the top ten twice, with his best finish in position!, I bootstrapped it and for a year built it on the 23rd of November, 1927 though less to! The height of Otis tenure, Times Mirror spokeswoman Martha Goldstein said neither Willes nor Downing comment. Harrison Otis was a vexing character and related celebs sometimes colluded with wealthy downtown business interests Times!

Is Abbie Cobb Related To Jennie Garth, Articles O