Richard Owen (December 11, 1922 – November 20, 2015) was an American attorney, jurist, and composer who served as a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case citations, S.D.N.Y.) is a federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of New York State. Two of these are in New York City: New ...

Early life and education

The son of an opera-loving attorney, Owen was born and raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. He served in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

from 1942 to 1945, and then received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

in 1945. He received a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

from Harvard Law School in 1950

Career

After earning his law degree, Owen entered private practice in New York City from 1950 to 1953. He was also an assistant professor at

New York Law School New York Law School (NYLS) is a private law school in Tribeca, New York City. NYLS has a full-time day program and a part-time evening program. NYLS's faculty includes 54 full-time and 59 adjunct professors. Notable faculty members include E ...

from 1951 to 1953. In 1953, Owen became an assistant United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, also serving as a special assistant United States attorney general in 1954. He was a senior trial attorney in the Antitrust Division of the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...

from 1955 to 1958. He returned to private practice in New York City from 1958 to 1974, also working as associate counsel to the New York State Commission on Alcoholic Beverage Laws from 1963 to 1964. Owen presided over the

Mafia Commission Trial The Mafia Commission Trial (in full, ''United States v. Anthony Salerno, et al'') was a criminal trial before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in New York City, United States, that lasted from February 25, 19 ...

and sentenced eight convicted defendants of racketeering on January 13, 1987.

Federal judicial service

On November 15, 1973, Owen was nominated by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Edward Cochrane McLean. Owen was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on December 13, 1973, and received his commission on December 19, 1973. He assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...

on September 30, 1989. His service terminated on November 20, 2015, due to his death in New York City.

Personal life

From 1960 until his death, Owen was married to Wisconsin-born Lynn Rasmussen, an opera singer.

Musical career

Owen was also a composer, and "dabbled in music all his life".Villamil, p. 285 He studied piano as a child and again once he finished law school. He studied composition with

Vittorio Giannini Vittorio Giannini (October 19, 1903 – November 28, 1966) was an American neoromantic composer of operas, songs, symphonies, and band works. Life and work Giannini was born in Philadelphia on October 19, 1903. He began as a violinist under the t ...

and

Robert Starer Robert Starer (8 January 1924 in Vienna – 22 April 2001 in Kingston, New York) was an Austrian-born American composer, pianist and educator. Robert Starer began studying the piano at age 4 and continued his studies at the Vienna State Academy ...

. His opera ''Abigail Adams,'' based on the lives of the second president and his wife, was first produced in 1987. Five of his art songs were published by the General Music Publishing Company between 1962 and 1973; they are known for their declamation and dramatic qualities.

Operas and other musical works

*''Dismissed With Prejudice'', opera, mid-1950s, presented under the auspices of the New York City Bar Association *''A Moment of War'', one-act opera, 1958 *''A Fisherman Called Peter'', sacred concert piece/opera, 1965 *''Mary Dyer'', opera, 1976 *''The Death of the Virgin,'' opera, libretto by Michael Whitney Straight, 1980/1983 *''Abigail Adams'', opera, 1987 *''American Stereopticon'', orchestral piece, 1988, unpublished *''Tom Sawyer'', opera, 1989 * ''

Rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...

'', opera, 2003

Songs

''published by General Music Publishing/Boston Music'' *The Impulse (1966, text by Robert Frost from ''The Hill Wife'') *I Saw a Man Pursuing the Horizon (1966, text by

Stephen Crane Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism an ...

) *Patterns (1973, text by

Amy Lowell Amy Lawrence Lowell (February 9, 1874 – May 12, 1925) was an American poet of the imagist school, which promoted a return to classical values. She posthumously won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1926. Life Amy Lowell was born on Febru ...

) *There were many who went in Huddled Procession (1966, text by

) *Till we watch the Last Low Star (1962, text by

Witter Bynner Harold Witter Bynner (August 10, 1881 – June 1, 1968), also known by the pen name Emanuel Morgan, was an American poet and translator. He was known for his long residence in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and association with other literary figures the ...

) ''unpublished'' *I felt a funeral in my brain (1981, text by

Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massac ...

) *Morning musings (1982, text by

) *The last night she lived (1981, text by

)Copies of the manuscripts for the three unpublished Dickinson songs are located at the New York Public Library.

References

Sources

* *

External links

*
''New York Times'' review of ''Abigail Adams''

* ttp://www.legacy.com/obituaries/nytimes/obituary.aspx?n=richard-owen&pid=176663652& Richard Owen's obituary {{DEFAULTSORT:Owen, Richard 1922 births 2015 deaths Dartmouth College alumni Harvard Law School alumni New York University faculty Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York United States district court judges appointed by Richard Nixon 20th-century American judges United States Army Air Forces soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II 20th-century classical composers American male classical composers American classical composers American opera composers Male opera composers Musicians from New York City 20th-century American composers Assistant United States Attorneys 20th-century American male musicians