George Ringwald, 81; His Stories on Indian Tribe Won a Pulitzer Prize
George Ringwald, 81, whose reporting on the Agua Caliente Indians of Palm Springs earned a Pulitzer Prize for the Riverside Press-Enterprise in 1968, died Sunday of cancer at his home in Eureka.
The newspaper won the prestigious award for meritorious public service after Ringwald exposed irregularities in the guardianship program of the tribe.
His stories showed that judges and attorneys had levied exorbitant fees against the estates of Agua Calientes to benefit conservators and guardians. The articles prompted changes in laws regulating estate administration for American Indians.
Born in St. Louis and educated at Colorado State University, Ringwald served in the Army infantry during World War II. After unsuccessfully trying to be a stage actor in New York, he joined the Riverside paper in 1948.
Ringwald left in 1969 to participate in a Stanford University fellowship program for journalists. After that year of study, he spent 15 years as a reporter for BusinessWeek in Japan, serving as Tokyo bureau chief.
During his retirement in Eureka, he taught English to adults, participated in local theater and freelanced for the North Coast Journal.
More to Read
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
