Lowell Thomas Jr.

Lowell Thomas Jr. (October 6, 1923 – October 1, 2016) was an American politician and film producer who collaborated with his father, the accomplished reporter and author Lowell Thomas, on several projects before becoming an Alaskan state senator in the early 1970s, and later the third lieutenant governor of Alaska from 1974 to 1978. In the 1980s, he owned and operated Talkeetna Air Taxi, an Alaska bush flying service.[1][2]

This article is about the politician born in 1923. For his father, the writer born in 1892, see Lowell Thomas. For the travel journalism awards program, see Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards.

Lowell Thomas Jr.
Official portrait, 1975
3rd Lieutenant Governor of Alaska
In office
December 2, 1974 – December 4, 1978
GovernorJay Hammond
Preceded byH. A. Boucher
Succeeded byTerry Miller
Member of the Alaska Senate
from District E
In office
January 23, 1967 – December 2, 1974
Personal details
Born(1923-10-06)October 6, 1923
London, England
DiedOctober 1, 2016(2016-10-01) (aged 92)
Anchorage, Alaska, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMary Taylor Pryor
Children2
Parent(s)Lowell Thomas Sr.
Frances Ryan
ProfessionAuthor, film producer, lecturer, bush pilot
Signature

Early life

Thomas was born on October 6, 1923, in London, England. He was the son of Americans, Lowell Thomas Sr., a prominent writer, broadcaster, and traveler, and Frances "Fran" (née Ryan) Thomas.

He graduated from the Taft School in 1942 and went on to Dartmouth College, where he was a brother of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity (Phi chapter), before joining the United States Army Air Corps.[3]

In 2011, The Taft School honored him with the Horace D. Taft Alumni Medal and Citation of Merit.[4]

Career

In 1949, Thomas and his father were invited by the Tibetan government to make a film there with the hope that their reports would help persuade the U.S. government to defend Tibet against the Chinese.[5] The trip lasted 400 days, and the father and son were the last Westerners to reach Lhasa before the Chinese invasion and occupation. CBS did not broadcast the resultant film, Expedition to Lhasa, Tibet,[6][7] until years later, but his book about the expedition, Out of This World, published in 1950 became a bestseller.[8]

In 1960, after the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet was given refuge in India, he wrote the book The Silent War in Tibet. "Mr. Thomas describes the brutal Chinese Communist invasion of Tibet beginning in 1950..."[9] and about the armed Tibetan resistance by citizens and lamas which began in the mid-1950s.[9] He told the Anchorage Daily News, "I guess it was the greatest adventure I ever had."[10] In 2006, the Dalai Lama bestowed the International Campaign for Tibet's Light of Truth Award on Lowell Jr and referred to him as "one of the grandfathers of modern day Tibet."[11][12]

In 1954, Thomas and wife Mary Taylor Pryor, known as "Tay", flew a Cessna 180 around much of the world, logging over 50,000 miles. They wrote about it in their book Our Flight to Adventure.[12]

Move to Alaska
Thomas in 1977

The Thomases moved to Alaska in 1958 where they would remain for the remainder of their lives.[13] After his political career, Thomas returned to flying, owning and operating Talkeetna Air Taxi and flying a Helio Courier for research and documentary work as well as flying climbers to and from Denali's Kahiltna Glacier and in the Alaska Range.[12] He remained an active pilot into his 80s.

Among other appearances, in 1958 he appeared as a guest challenger on the TV panel show To Tell the Truth. In 1962, he narrated a children's recording, "The Story of Mr. Globe" which was produced by Replogle Globe, Inc in Chicago, Illinois.

From January 1967 until December 1974, he represented District E in the Alaska Senate as a Republican. He left the State Senate to become the 3rd lieutenant governor of Alaska under Governor Jay Hammond.

Long a resident of Alaska, he was known for his interest in the now-defunct Naval Arctic Research Laboratory based in Barrow, Alaska, currently the home of Iḷisaġvik College. Much as his father had done he ventured into the harsh environment of the ice islands where research was done by scientists on the Arctic Ocean and its atmosphere including the Auroras. He published his adventure in National Geographic in 1965 as well as numerous other productions and publications, including a movie on king crab in the Aleutian Islands.[14]

Legacy and awards

The Thomases were generous philanthropists, and were involved in the building of the biathlon training facility above Girdwood, the Thomas Planetarium at the Anchorage Museum, and the Thomas Center for Senior Living at St. Mary's Episcopal Church where he and Tay were long-time members and supporters.[12]

In 1995, he was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the National Parks Conservation Foundation, and in 2004 the Alaska Conservation Foundation awarded him with a lifetime achievement award as well.[15] In 2001, he was awarded the first ever Bruce F. Vento Public Service Award by the National Park Trust.[16]

References
  1. "Daily News - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
  2. "Former Lt. Governor Lowell Thomas Jr. has died". Ktuu.com. October 6, 1923. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  3. Source: Taft Bulletin 2009; "Angel of Denali"
  4. "Horace D. Taft Alumni Medal and Citation of Merit : 2011 Recipient : Lowell Thomas, Jr. '42" (PDF). Taftschool.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 2, 2017. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  5. "Media Tycoon : Lowell Thomas was an accomplished businessman as well as a journalist". Cliohistory.org. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  6. "Lowell Thomas, Jr., who brought Tibet alive for millions of Americans, passes away". International Campaign for Tibet. October 7, 2016. Archived from the original on January 15, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017. While Lowell Sr. used the platform of his radio broadcasts for spreading the message of the plight of Tibet, Lowell Jr. wrote a bestselling book, Out Of This World, and later produced a movie by the same name, which became a part of his father's High Adventure television series and was seen by many people around the world (and currently is found on YouTube).
  7. Thomas Jr., Lowell (November 26, 2015). "Out of This World, A Journey to Lhasa Tibet". YouTube (VIDEO). Archived from the original on December 15, 2021.
  8. Source: Taft Bulletin 2009, "Angel of Denali"
  9. Thomas Jr., Lowell (1960). "Chapter XII- Open Rebellion". Thomas, Lowell. 1960. The silent war in Tibet. London: Secker & Warburg (1st ed.). London: Secker & Warburg. p. 182. OCLC 753005113. Instead the Chinese tried again to establish administrative control, this time through the Preparatory Committee, which every Tibetan knew would mean the death of Tibet as a nation and as a culture. Moreover, despite indoctrination, the Dalai Lama was as stubborn as ever, and the effect of his statement in July 1955 was to sanction the people's resistance to the idea of the Preparatory Committee. At this point the Chinese had used unsuccessfully the last of their non-violent means for achieving the complete subjugation of Tibet... Thus the lama Mimang representatives finally cast the vote in favor of uprising.
  10. Bryson, George (November 28, 2005). "Historic film looks at Tibet LOWELL THOMAS JR.: He visited just before China invaded in 1950". Canada Tibet Committee. Archived from the original on October 6, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  11. "Lowell Thomas, Jr., who brought Tibet alive for millions of Americans, passes away". International Campaign for Tibet. October 7, 2016. Archived from the original on January 15, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017. one of the grandfathers of modern day Tibet.
  12. "Lowell Thomas Jr., former Alaska lieutenant governor, dead at 92 – Alaska Dispatch News". Adn.com. October 3, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  13. A survivor of the 1964 Alaska earthquake was Mrs. Thomas who with her two children just escaped when their house was torn in half and landslide down. She wrote about her experience in the July 1964 issue of National Geographic Magazine; sadly two children of her neighbor were killed when their house was destroyed
  14. "ADAK ALASKA LOWELL THOMAS JR. "KING OF THE ALASKAN SEAS" KING CRAB MOVIE 87064". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  15. "Alaska Conservation Hall of Fame | Alaska Conservation Foundation".
  16. "Vento Award Recipients". National Park Trust. 2021.
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