William F. Thomas (June 11, 1924 – February 23, 2014) was an American

newspaper editor An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

, notably as chief editor of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' from 1971 to 1989. Thomas was born in 1924 in

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. During the middle of the 1950s, Thomas graduated at the

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, and embarked on a new career. After graduation, he shortly worked for several newspapers before joining the ''Los Angeles Times'' in 1957. He was promoted to assistant city editor in 1962 and soon after became metropolitan editor in 1965. He resigned shy of his 65th birthday. By his retirement in 1989, he managed to grab over 1 million subscribers.

Personal life

His wife, Pat, died in 2000, after 52 years of marriage. Thomas left behind three sons and one granddaughter. During his journalism career, he had won 11 Pulitzers.

References

1924 births 2014 deaths American newspaper editors Los Angeles Times people {{US-editor-stub