Charles M. Hackett Jr. ’55

An engineer with two advanced degrees, the holder of multiple patents, an adventurous traveler, and a master carver at dinner, Charley died peacefully in his sleep April 8, 2011, in Tustin, Calif., of complications from surgery.  

A Prospect Club member, Charley rowed lightweight crew for four years, including at the 1955 Henley Regatta. After earning advanced degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford, Charley began his career at General Electric, where he developed patents in carrier restoration means for binary signals. While working at Boeing he developed a means of jamming signals used in the B-1 bomber and received a patent in digital-signal processing.

Charley’s adventurous nature led him to travel to all 50 states, lead hikes at major Southern California peaks, ride the Trans-Siberian Railway across the USSR, and visit Mongolia for his 1985 honeymoon trip. Combining his love of tennis and math, Charley developed a Fortran program to handicap club tennis players in matches and tournaments.  

To his wife, Rosemary; children Cheryl, Linda, and Dan; stepsons Tony and Patrick; and four granddaughters, the class sends appreciation for a life well lived.

“If there is another world, he lives in bliss.

If there is none, he made the best of this.”  

— Robert Burns