Jerry Lipson, a former reporter who worked for a decade and a half as an aide to Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, died Feb. 28 at a skilled nursing facility in Springfield, Va. He was 81.
The cause was complications from cancer, said his son, Jonathan C. Lipson.
Gerald Lipson was born in Chicago on Aug. 27, 1935. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from Roosevelt University in Chicago in 1957 and a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., in 1961.
In the 1960s, Mr. Lipson reported for publications including the Wilmington News Journal in Delaware, the old Washington Star and the old Chicago Daily News, where he covered the 1968 Democratic National Convention and the legal case of James Earl Ray, who assassinated civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968.
In the early 1970s, Mr. Lipson embarked on a career on Capitol Hill. He was press secretary for Sen. Charles H. Percy (R-Ill.) and Rep. John B. Anderson (R-Ill.), according to his son, as well as for Rep. John J. Rhodes (R-Ariz.) during his tenure as House minority leader and for the House International Relations Committee under chairman Benjamin A. Gilman (R-N.Y.).
In the 1980s, Mr. Lipson returned to journalism, reporting for the New York Post and the Chicago Sun-Times. In the late ’80s and early ’90s, he was spokesman for the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Mr. Lipson was a delegate to the 1980 Republican National Convention in Detroit and campaign manager for Maryland state delegate Constance A. Morella (R) when she was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986. His memberships included the Washington Press Club.
Attribution: Emily Langer, Washington Post
I am saddened to hear of Jerry Lipson's death. He and his wife, Lois, were longtime friends of ours during our years in Washington and later. We visited with them in Evanston in 1968 right after the DNC Convention in Chicago. We met in 1965 at the Star and stayed in touch through the years, as the Lipsons returned to DC, and we moved to Honolulu, seeing them several times in 1980s return visits to Washington. Jerry was energetic and persistent. He seemed always upbeat and positive with a sense of humor that made conversation with him a treat. Sorry to have lost track of Jerry, Lois and their sons in recent years. Perhaps someone has an address for sending a reminiscent card. Thanks to the Star alumni organization for the hard work of informing so many of us. Aloha, John.
ReplyDelete