Edward Samuel Montgomery (December 30, 1910 – April 6, 1992) was an American journalist who won the 1951

Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting The Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting is awarded to an example of "local reporting that illuminates significant issues or concerns." This Pulitzer Prize was first awarded in 1948. Like most Pulitzers the winner receives a $15,000 award. History ...

for writing a series of articles on tax fraud.

Biography

Montgomery was born in

Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado Larimer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 359 ...

. He graduated from the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12, ...

in 1934 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

. Upon graduation, Montgomery was hired by the ''

Nevada State Journal The ''Reno Gazette Journal'' is the main daily newspaper for Reno, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Gannett Company. It came into being when the ''Nevada State Journal'' (founded on November 23, 1870) and the ''Reno Evening Gazette'' (foun ...

'', but left the ''Journal'' two years later to pursue work in other media. He returned to journalism in 1938, joining the ''

Reno Evening Gazette The ''Reno Gazette Journal'' is the main daily newspaper for Reno, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Gannett Company. It came into being when the ''Nevada State Journal'' (founded on November 23, 1870) and the ''Reno Evening Gazette'' (fou ...

'', where he first worked as an editor. Montgomery served in the

Marine Corps Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refl ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

(1942–45). After the war, Montgomery went to work for the '' San Francisco Examiner'', where he stayed until his retirement in 1975. During his time at the ''Examiner'', Montgomery became involved in two murder trials. He found the body of 14-year-old Stephanie Bryan in May 1955.

Burton Abbott Burton Wilbur Abbott (February 8, 1928 – March 15, 1957) was a University of California at Berkeley accounting student living in Alameda, California, who was convicted in November 1955 of the rape and murder of 14-year-old Stephanie Bryan. ...

was later sentenced to death for her murder. That same year, Montgomery reported on

Barbara Graham Barbara Elaine "Bonnie" Wood Graham (née Ford; June 26, 1923 – June 3, 1955) was an American criminal convicted of murder. She was executed in the gas chamber at San Quentin Prison on the same day as two convicted accomplices, Jack Santo and E ...

's execution. His coverage of the Graham case was adapted into the film ''

I Want to Live! ''I Want to Live!'' is a 1958 American biographical film noir directed by Robert Wise and starring Susan Hayward, Simon Oakland, Virginia Vincent and Theodore Bikel. It follows the life of Barbara Graham, a prostitute and habitual criminal w ...

'' (1958).

Personal life

Montgomery was married to Helene Louise Per Lee (1914–2007), whom he had met in college. They had three children: Diana, Douglas and David. Montgomery died of pneumonia in San Francisco in 1992.

References

;Notes {{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Edward S 20th-century American journalists American male journalists American crime reporters American investigative journalists San Francisco Examiner people Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting winners Journalists from Nevada Writers from Reno, Nevada University of Nevada, Reno alumni United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II Deaths from pneumonia in California 1910 births 1992 deaths Journalistic scandals