Otto Fuerbringer, 97, who was Time magazine’s managing editor during the turbulent 1960s when it famously asked: “Is God Dead?” on the cover and switched to opposing the Vietnam War, has died.
Fuerbringer died Monday at a nursing home in Fullerton, Calif., his son said.
Fuerbringer held Time’s top editorial position for eight years.
Under his direction, the magazine tackled the culture wars of its era with cover stories on the birth control pill, the sexual revolution, and in the April 8, 1966, edition, asked on the cover in bold red letters: “Is God Dead?” The article examined the changing view of the Judeo-Christian god and challenges to the traditional view of a personal deity.
Time had long supported the Vietnam War, but in 1968 Fuerbringer wrote that it could not be won.
He wrote more than 30 cover stories for Time and became managing editor in 1960. In 1968, Fuerbringer was named editor of magazine development for Time Inc. He led the team that created People and Money magazines.
Dr. Julius Richmond, 91, the U.S. surgeon general in the Carter administration who issued a massive report labeling cigarette smoking “slow-motion suicide,” has died.
Richmond, who also was the first director of Head Start, died Sunday at his Boston-area home, said a spokeswoman for Harvard University, where Richmond was professor emeritus.
In 1979, Richmond presented his Surgeon’s General’s Report on smoking, a follow-up to the 1964 report that led to warnings on cigarette packs.
The 1,200-page report provided greater detail, saying that smoking causes a variety of diseases and smoking by pregnant women harms their fetuses.
In another report in December 1980, Richmond documented Americans’ efforts to live healthier lives, citing increases in the number of adults who exercise regularly and a greater awareness of the dangers of high blood pressure and heart disease.
According to his Harvard biography, Richmond’s work on poverty and early childhood development led to an appointment as the first director of Head Start.
Part of the Johnson administration’s war on poverty, it was launched as a summer program in 1965 aimed at helping poor children be better prepared for school.
The Associated Press
