William Laporte, 88; Longtime American Home Products Exec

William Laporte, 88, former chairman and president of American Home Products Corp., died Sept. 10 at his home in New York City.

Under Laporte’s leadership, the company advertised aggressively on television and became one of the largest producers of pharmaceuticals and household chemicals in the world. Products such as Anacin and Preparation H became household names.

Born in New York City, Laporte graduated from Princeton University before earning his master’s degree in business administration from Harvard. He went to work for American Home in 1938 and rose to president, a post he held from 1960 to 1965. From 1965 until his retirement in 1986, he served terms as chairman, president and chief executive, and chairman of the executive committee.

In 1981, he retired as chief executive after leading the company’s growth in revenue, earnings and dividends each year since 1965.