David C. Copley (January 31, 1952 – November 20, 2012) was an American publishing heir, on the board of the

Copley Press Copley Press was a privately held newspaper business, founded in Illinois, but later based in La Jolla, California. Its flagship paper was ''The San Diego Union-Tribune''. History Founder Ira Clifton Copley launched Copley Press c. 1905, eventu ...

for over thirty years, becoming president and owner, as well as publisher of the '' San Diego Union-Tribune''. He was a noted philanthropist.

Early life

Copley was born as David Hunt in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

in 1952, the son of Helen K. Copley. He went to boarding school at Canterbury School, graduating in 1970. In 1988, the school dedicated ''David Casey Copley Library'' is his honor. He went on to attain a BA in Business Administration from

Menlo College Menlo College is a private college specializing in business and is located in Atherton, California. Campus Menlo College is situated on 45-acre (0.18 km2) campus in Atherton, California, 25 miles southeast of San Francisco and 20 miles nort ...

in 1975. His mother worked for James Copley, the owner of

, as secretary, marrying him in 1965. On her husband's death she became owner of the Copley Press chain of some 20

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...

s and a wire service, the Copley News Service. Copley was formally adopted two months after the wedding.

Ownership of Copley Press

Copley joined the board of directors of Copley Press in 1975, becoming senior vice president and assistant to the president in 1984. In 1988, he became president of Copley Press and in 1997 he became publisher of the San Diego Union-Tribune. During his tenure as publisher, the U-T won two Pulitzer Prizes: one was in 2006 for its role in uncovering the

Duke Cunningham Randall Harold "Duke" Cunningham (born December 8, 1941) is a former American politician, decorated Vietnam War veteran, fighter ace, and ex-felon. Cunningham served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's ...

bribery scandal; the other was in 2009 for the work of editorial cartoonist

Steve Breen Stephen Paul Breen (born April 26, 1970) is a nationally syndicated cartoonist. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning twice, in 1998 and 2009. Biography He graduated from Huntington Beach High School in 1988 and attended the Univers ...

. In 2007/2008, the paper also won the

California Newspaper Publishers Association California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

's ''Best in the State'' award. In May 2009 the San Diego Union-Tribune was sold to a

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

investment firm.

Philanthropy

Until his death a resident of the

neighborhood of La Jolla, California, Copley had been named in

Forbes Magazine ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also rep ...

's 2005 list of the 400 richest Americans and according to ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' magazine was a billionaire. After his

heart transplant A heart transplant, or a cardiac transplant, is a surgical transplant procedure performed on patients with end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease when other medical or surgical treatments have failed. , the most common procedu ...

there in June 2005, Copley donated a reported $5 million to

Sharp Healthcare Sharp HealthCare is a not-for-profit regional health care group located in San Diego. Sharp includes four acute care hospitals, three specialty hospitals, three affiliated medical groups, and a health plan. Sharp has approximately 2,600 physician ...

, operator of

Sharp Memorial Hospital Sharp Memorial Hospital is a hospital in San Diego, California, in the United States. Opened in 1955, Sharp Memorial is Sharp HealthCare's largest hospital and the system's only designated Level II trauma center. Located in Serra Mesa, the hospi ...

., allowing the founding of the David C. Copley Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Center. Copley was a noted sponsor of the arts, both personally and through the James S. Copley Foundation, including the

Old Globe Theatre The Old Globe is a professional theatre company located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. It produces about 15 plays and musicals annually in summer and winter seasons. Plays are performed in three separate theatres in the complex, which i ...

and

Museum of Photographic Arts The Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) is a museum in San Diego's Balboa Park. First founded in 1974, MOPA opened in 1983.Balboa Park, San Diego, and the

La Jolla Playhouse La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. History La Jolla Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, and Mel Ferrer. In 1983, it was revived under ...

. He supported the Museum of Contemporary Art both financially and on the board, leading to the establishment of The David C. Copley Chair and the David C. Copley Building, and from 2011 until his death he served as President of the Board of Trustees of the museum. He established The David C. Copley Center for the Study of Costume Design at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

with a $6 million grant in 2008. He also gave to animal shelters in San Diego and Escondido, as well as the San Diego Crew Classic and the new downtown library.

Interests

Copley was an avid collector of contemporary art, which included a world class collection by

Christo Christo Vladimirov Javacheff (1935–2020) and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon (1935–2009), known as Christo and Jeanne-Claude, were artists noted for their large-scale, site-specific environmental installations, often large landmarks and ...

, as well as pieces by

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...

John Baldessari John Anthony Baldessari (June 17, 1931 – January 2, 2020) was an American conceptual artist known for his work featuring found photography and appropriated images. He lived and worked in Santa Monica and Venice, California. Initially a painter ...

, and

David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English painter, draftsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists o ...

. He also enjoyed the theatre and was a Tony-winning producer of the 2008 Broadway musical ''

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

'', directed by the

artistic director

Christopher Ashley Christopher Ashley (born July 6, 1964) is an American stage director. Since 2007, he has been the artistic director of the La Jolla Playhouse. Career Ashley graduated from Yale University in 1986, with a Bachelor of Art in Theatre.

. Copley was a motoring enthusiast, and collector of classic cars. His collection included an Aston Martin, a Porsche, a Cadillac, and a

Maybach Maybach (, ) is a German luxury car brand that exists today as a part of Mercedes-Benz. The original company was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son Karl Maybach, originally as a subsidiary of ''Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH'', and ...

. Between 1986 and 2002, he was arrested three times for drunk driving. After his arrest in 1989, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two days in jail, a $939 fine, and five years' probation. He was also a keen sailor, and owned a

Hobie catamaran The ISAF International Class Hobie 16 (H16) is a popular catamaran manufactured by the Hobie Cat Company for racing and day sailing. The craft was the driving force behind the popularization of beachcats and was recently inducted into the Sail ...

and the 50m Delta Marine motor-yacht ''Happy Days''.

Death

Copley died on November 20, 2012, from an apparent heart attack, while driving his Aston Martin, about a mile from home in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego. Police and fire crews on the scene attempted CPR, and Copley was taken to nearby Scripps Memorial Hospital. Resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful, likely due to underlying cardiac issues. He had been the recipient of a

in June 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Copley, David C. 1952 births 2012 deaths Copley family 20th-century American newspaper publishers (people) American billionaires American adoptees Canterbury School (Connecticut) alumni Menlo College alumni American sailors Heart transplant recipients 20th-century American philanthropists