Charles T. Brumback ’50

Charlie, a leader in the newspaper industry, died in Winter Park, Fla., Jan. 12, 2015, after a long decline from a 2007 stroke.

He graduated from Culver Military Academy. At Princeton, where his father was a member of the Class of 1915, he majored in economics and belonged to Dial. Called to active duty in 1951, Charlie served in Korea as a lieutenant in the Field Artillery and was awarded a Bronze Star.

His newspaper career began as controller of the Orlando Sentinel, where in 1976, he became its president and CEO. He moved to Chicago in 1981, when he was appointed president and CEO of the Chicago Tribune. In 1989, he became president and CEO of the Tribune Co. and its chairman in 1993. Described by his successor as “a blunt, no-nonsense manager,” Charlie effectively brought new technologies to publishing and broadcasting.

He was chairman of the Newspaper Association of America and active on the boards of educational and health organizations.

Upon his retirement in 1995, Charlie moved to Florida and acquired a 1,200-acre orange grove, where he spent much time.

Our condolences go to his children, Charles Jr., Anne, Wesley, and Ellen; brother John ’53; sister Cynthia; and seven grandchildren. His wife, Mary, whom he married in 1951, died in 2009.