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Paul Massey and his wife, Jane, were married 50 years. |
Paul Massey; newspaperman led Dedham Daily Transcript
Paul Massey was born to be in newspapers.
The third son of a foreman with the Lowell Sun and the Waltham News Tribune, Mr. Massey ran the Daily Transcript in Dedham for 14 years and later headed a collection of about 20 weekly papers in the Cleveland suburbs and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in Alaska.
Three days after the Transcript ceased daily publication, Mr. Massey died in his sleep Sept. 28 while vacationing in Germany. He was 75.
Born in Lowell, Mr. Massey lived in Lexington and Waltham before his family settled in Dedham when he was 7.
There, Mr. Massey’s father, Frank, purchased the local paper in 1945 and later hired his son as a typesetter.
In 1972, Mr. Massey became the Transcript general manager as part of his father’s sale of the paper. He ran the publication until 1986, converting it from a weekly paper to a daily.
Many colleagues and friends remember him for his professionalism and class.
“He was just an exceptional gentleman, the epitome of class.’’ said John Urbancich, executive editor under Mr. Massey at the Sun Newspapers in Greater Cleveland. “He put everybody at ease because he was such an exceptionally unflappable guy. He was a great leader; we were all proud to work for him.’’
Mr. Massey graduated from Boston College High School in 1951. Then at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) in Pittsburgh, he studied printing management.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1956, he preempted the draft and enlisted in the US Army, which stationed him near Stuttgart, Germany.
On leave from the service a year later, he met Jane (Galvin) of Newton at a New Year’s Eve party in Dedham.
“We were each with other dates, but we just got to talking to each other, and it went from there,’’ said Mrs. Massey, his wife of 50 years.
The two exchanged letters as Mr. Massey completed his service in Germany and began dating upon his return in 1958. They wed at St. Ann’s by the Sea in Marshfield in 1959 and had four children in the next five years.
In 1958, Mr. Massey began in an entry-level position at his father’s paper, setting type on the printing press. Over the next 14 years, he worked his way up to the company’s top post.
He remained general manager of the paper for the next 14 years, surviving at least four sets of owners.
That longevity is evidence of his accomplishments, colleagues said. He built the community weekly into an area news conglomerate, Transcript Newspapers Inc. He first converted the weekly Dedham Transcript into a daily, renaming it the Daily Transcript. He then started purchasing neighboring publications.
By 1985, the company produced two daily papers, the Transcript and the News-
While running the papers, he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Bentley College.
In 1986, Sun Newspapers, a collection of about 20 community weeklies around Greater Cleveland, hired Mr. Massey away from Dedham to become its president and chief executive.
He led the company, with a circulation of more than 200,000, for four years before returning to Massachusetts, where he lived in Cambridge.
In 1992, two former owners of the Transcript bought the News-Miner in Fairbanks, Alaska, and hired Mr. Massey to run it.
Despite being more than 4,000 miles from home, the Masseys dove into Alaskan life, family and colleagues said.
“We thought he wouldn’t last a day, but he fooled everybody,’’ said Jeff Cook, an oil refinery executive in Fairbanks and one of Mr. Massey’s best friends there.
Mr. Massey quickly made an impact on the paper - introducing a Saturday edition and shifting from afternoon to morning delivery - and on the city of about 30,000. He served on the board of Alaska Airlines and the Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce and volunteered with the community food bank, city arts festival, and United Way.
“I learned a lot from him. . . . He did a great job of empowering all his managers to run their departments effectively,’’ said his successor and current News-Miner publisher, Marilyn Romano, who worked under Mr. Massey for eight years. “[The Masseys] both got here and just really embraced the community . . . You never would have known a year later - well, other than the Boston accents - that Jane and Paul weren’t here forever.’’
When Mr. Massey retired in 2000, the Fairbanks Boy Scouts presented the Masseys with the Distinguished Citizens of the Year award.
“It was wonderful for both of us to know another part of the world,’’ his wife said. “Our years there were special. We were embraced by the community.’’
The couple later split time between a home in Marshfield and a condominium in Naples, Fla. Mr. Massey was an avid reader and golfer and loved Boston sports, family said.
“He was wonderful, the type of dad that was always there for us,’’ said his daughter, Jennifer Vogelzang of Lexington. “There are pictures of him on horseback in Alaska, hunting, fishing. . . . He lived life to the fullest.’’
Mr. Massey died in his sleep while vacationing with Tex Hood, an Army friend, in Stuggart, where they were stationed.
In addition to his wife and daughter, he leaves two sons, Paul Jr. of Larchmont, N.Y., and Mark of New York City; a daughter, Moira Lown of Wellesley; a sister, Marilyn of Ocala, Fla.; a brother, Peter of San Diego; and seven grandchildren.
Services have been held.
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.