June '12 Luncheon - Bob Philip '40

Bob Philip '40, Dan Alexander '53,and John Ellis '50

The June luncheon was a rare treat for those who attended.  As one of our three oldest brothers still standing, Bob Philip '40 shared some of the colorful stories of his long career.  There was little discussion about his 18 years as a Regent for the University of Washington, but there was a an educational and entertaining story to be told of Bob becoming the owner of the Tri-City Herald.  And he noted several times that the acquisition was made possible with the investments of a number of his contemporary Sigma Tau brothers.  The crowd enjoyed themselves as Bob described his accidental entry into the publishing business.  And the story was only more colorful as he described the 13 year union strike they survived.

Bob was informative and entertaining, and the crowd peppered him with questions.  Bob's business acumen is rivaled by his clever wit, so even the Q & A was well worth the cost of attendance.  Being the class of '40, Bob didn't have any classmates attending, but there was a good group attending to welcome him as Tom Allen '43 introduced him.

Tom Allen '43, Dick Radloff '59, and Chuck Lappenbusch '59