Obituaries - March 30, 1999
Bernhardt L. Dorman; Rocket Propulsion Pioneer
Bernhardt L. Dorman, 91, rocket propulsion pioneer for Aerojet-General Corp. Born in Chicago, Dorman earned his engineering degree at Purdue University and spent much of his career developing Azusa-based Aerojet-General. He served as vice president in charge of test operations, developing rocket propulsion systems for the Apollo moon mission and for the Polaris, Titan and Minuteman ballistic missiles. Later, he became president of Aerojet Investments Ltd., which managed the company’s facilities and real estate. In 1967, Dorman took a brief leave from Aerojet to serve as assistant administrator for industry affairs for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. On Saturday while playing golf at the Santa Ana Country Club.
Sam Gordon; Journalist, Press Liaison for Superior Court
Sam Gordon, 80, former editor of the Hollywood Citizen News and news media liaison for the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Born the son of a rabbi in Memphis, Tenn., Gordon attended Butler University and Indiana University, where he earned a journalism degree and was editor of the Indiana Daily Student newspaper. After working for newspapers in Tennessee, Gordon served in the Army Signal Corps during World War II and then relocated to Los Angeles. He worked for the now-defunct Hollywood Citizen News from 1950 until 1963, rising from police reporter to city editor and eventually executive editor. In 1964, he became managing editor of the Metropolitan Daily News, a Los Angeles paper for the legal community. During that period, he also obtained his law degree from La Salle University and was admitted to the State Bar of California in 1973 along with his oldest son, David. He was named to the court position in 1972 and coordinated press coverage of such trials as actress Carol Burnett’s libel suit against the National Enquirer and a palimony suit against tennis player Billie Jean King. After his retirement from the court, Gordon practiced law. He served as president of the Temple Adat Shalom of West Los Angeles and founded the Culver City Homeowners Assn. On Sunday in Long Beach of pneumonia.
Al Hicks; Publicist for Hollywood Studios Worked in Europe
Al Hicks, 81, Hollywood publicist abroad. A native New Yorker, Hicks served in the Army Air Corps Signal Corps in North Africa during World War II. After the war, he earned a journalism degree at USC, where he was editor of the Wampus humor magazine. He worked for trade papers until 1952, when he moved to Europe as a publicist for Hollywood studios making films overseas. A major client was 20th Century Fox. In London, Hicks was active in the Wig and Pen Club. After retiring to Los Angeles in 1984, he worked in the Greater Los Angeles Press Club, the Publicists Guild and the American Legion Hollywood Post 43. On March 7 in Hollywood.
Ellen Hall Langer; Former Child Star and Ingenue
Ellen Hall Langer, 75, child star and ingenue of 1930s and 1940s motion pictures. Born in Los Angeles to parents in the film industry, Langer was on screen by age 7. She made her debut in 1944 as a Goldwyn girl in “Up in Arms,” starring Danny Kaye and Dinah Shore. She had the lead role opposite Johnny Mack Brown in the western “Outlaws of Stampede Pass” in that same period. Langer appeared with such stars as Bob Hope and Bela Lugosi. On Wednesday in Bellevue, Neb.
Theodore “Teddy” McRae; Jazz Arranger and Composer
Theodore “Teddy” McRae, 91, arranger and composer who worked with jazz greats Sy Oliver and Chick Webb. McRae, who played saxophone, co-wrote the hits “Back Bay Shuffle” in 1938 and “Traffic Jam” in 1939 with band leader Artie Shaw. McRae also co-wrote “You Showed Me the Way” in 1937 with Ella Fitzgerald, Bud Green and Webb. The composer worked with Webb’s band as saxophonist and musical director from 1936 to 1939 and led his own band in the 1940s. Born in Waycross, Ga., McRae studied medicine before switching to music. Early in his career he worked as musical director for Lionel Hampton. In 1958, McRae formed the Enrica Records and Rae-Cox companies with Eddie Wilcox to produce such record albums as “Bennie Green Swings the Blues.” On March 4 in New York.
Wilbur Pritchard; Satellite Engineering Pioneer
Wilbur Pritchard, 75, a satellite engineering pioneer who was an early advocate of using satellites to broadcast information directly to homes. Pritchard joined Raytheon Corp. in Massachusetts in 1947 and helped develop a system for sending information via microwave transmissions. He was among the engineers who invented the Radarange, the first microwave oven. In 1962, he moved to California, joining Aerospace Corp., where he directed the team that produced the country’s first operational military satellite system, and assisted the North Atlantic Treaty Organization with its communications satellite program. He served on committees for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Academy of Sciences, and he was founder and former board chairman of the Society of Satellite Professionals International. On March 18 in Bethesda, Md., of lung cancer.
