Former Oregon AP news editor dies at 99

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Gordon G. Macnab, who spent 30 years with The Associated Press, many of them as its Oregon news editor, died Feb. 19 at age 99, four days short of his 100th birthday.

Frank Wetzel, former AP Oregon bureau chief, said MacNab was known for his integrity.

“He could be testy and demanding of others, but he demanded it of himself as well. He was just an outstanding newsman.”

Macnab was born Feb. 23, 1906, in Rock Rapids, Iowa. He graduated from the University of Iowa. He joined the Oregon Journal in 1937 as a reporter, then worked as a copy editor before joining the AP in 1941.

During World War II, he served in the Army Air Corps in the Aleutians, and then was assigned to Pentagon intelligence publications. He was discharged as a captain and awarded the Legion of Merit.

He retired from The Associated Press in 1971 and moved to Redmond, Wash., in 1997.

In 1940, he married Mary Louise “Molly” Thompson; she died in 2001.

Survivors include his son, Alexander; daughters, Laura LeVan and Jean Hanson; and two grandchildren.

The family suggests remembrances to the Oregon Historical Society or the Oregon affiliate of the ACLU.