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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 1962)
2 JJ SUNDAY. DECEMBER 18. 1962 MEDFOBD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, OREGON Construction Tycoon Goes Into Newspaper Publishing (Editor'! nolo: The n tion' ntwti! major newipa par publiihar it Palar Kie wit, a Nebratkan who had already araciad a construc tion ampira bafora ha bought tha Omaha World Harald. A Unilad Prait In ternational raportar inter viewed Kiewit in hii Oma ha office and raporti in tha following diipatch on hit career and plant.) By ROBERT G. HOIG United Pratt International Omaha, Nob. -IUPD- When Peter Kiewit's doctor told him 32 years ago he would have to stop leading an active life, Kiewit set to work and: Built the Chicago tub way. Tackled a World War II project that called for build ing one new atructure every 20 minutes until 2,500 build ings were up at Camp Carson, Colo. Took on construction of the giant U. S. Air Force base at Thulc, Greenland, building it on top of an Icecap. Finished six months ahead of schedule and saved the government $400 million on the $1.2 billion atomic gaseous diffusion plant at Portsmouth, Ohio. Built dams, skyscrapers, tunnels, waterways, factories, military installations and mis . cile sites. Hardly taking a deep breath, construction tycoon Kiewit last Oct. 31 also be came one of the midwest's major newspaper publishers. He purchased the 77-year-old Omaha World-Herald, largest newspaper In Nebraska, for $40,448,000. Kiewit's motive was char acteristically simple. He learn, ed the newspaper, which has always been owned by Oma hans, was about to be pur chased by New York publish ing magnate S. I. Ncwhou.se. Kiewit moved quickly and topped the Newhouse bid of $183.25 a share with one of $185 a share. He said he had nothing against Newhouse ex cept that "he lives in New York instead of Omaha." Kiewit's roots are firmly planted in Omaha, even though he figures he averages only seven or eight nights a month at home. The rest of the time he spends flying about the nation and the world, keeping an eye on the projects under way by his firm, Peter Kiewit & Sons. Kiewit is now 82 years old, a six-footer of medium weight and a grandfather eight times over. In a recent interview, he sat in his Omaha head quarters with the sleeves of his white shirt rolled halfway up and reminisced. "I've had the desire to build almost from Infancy," he said, "I could read blueprints as soon as I could read books." He learned about the con struction business at the fam- WIP HER) VJrS- "-a a' 10-ptece "Continental" STAINLESS STEEL COOKWARE You'll enjoy the easy care and rich beauty of West Bend's Continental stainless steel cookware. Com plete set includes 1, 2 and 3 quart sauce pans with covers, 5 qt. Dutch Oven toaster, and 10" tri ply skillet with cover. complete) 10-pc. let $19.88 IASILY ;;;" J PORTABLE III I "M i I! 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Kiewit still smiles at Omaha gossip that he started in busi ness life as rich young man, Young Kiewit became a timekeeper, waterboy and bricklayer, found time to go to Dartmouth college, and was president of the family firm by 1931. Would Slow Down One year earlier, Kiewit's doctor had told him he had phlebitis and that he would have to take it easy or face the consequences. "My illness was the turning point ... I had to begin to depend on people," Kiewit said. The child prodigy of the construction business had to learn to relax. Hardly a year went by between 1930 and 1D50 that he avoided brief or prolonged hospitalization. Thirty-two years after he was stricken, Kiewit says with a touch of satisfaction "I guess you can say I'm still pretty busy." Wat Flying Eatt Kiewit was busy flying east from California Oct. 12 when he bought a newspaper and began thinking of buying an other one - the World-Herald. During a stopover at Den ver, Kiewit bought a copy of the Wall Street Journal and read a story that the World Herald was up for sale. On the flight home, he mulled over the idea of buying the newspaper himself. Four days later "I asked for the privilege of looking over the earnings figures of the World Herald News corpora tion and they refused to give them," Kiewit said. Kiewit quoted World pub lishing co-chairman W, Dale Clark as saying the directors "had a buyer and were satis fied with his offer and were not interested in any other offer." Kiewit was in and out of Omaha for the following 11 days, but on Oct. 26 he re ceived an Important call. "Someone" had gotten the necessary earnings report and I other figures. Kiewit called Clark long distance from a ranch near Sheridan, Wyo. "I told him we had enough Information for an offer but didn't want to make one if they would not consider it," Kiewit said. "Time is getting short," Kie wit quoted Clark as saying. Kiewit flew to Omaha and met with Clark through most of a Sunday. The two confer red in a loth-floor conference room of the Kiewit firm's world headquarters building, the new, $4-million Kiewit Plaza. Kiewit was Impressed by the figures shown him. The World-Herald had earned $1, 700,000 after taxes in 1061; subsidiary television station KETV was profitable, earning $300,000 last year; other mon ey making properties were in- ! ' ' i PETER KIEWIT Buys Omaha Nawtpapar eluded the Doctors build ing and the Farnam building in downtown Omaha; 157 acres of choice farm land west of Omaha at 114 and Dodge sts.: other real estate; and, although it would be deduct ed from the purchase price, $8 million In cash and nego tiable securities. Hardly less significant In Kiewit's mind was Omaha's role in the prospering mid west, where the once-struggling Kiewit had grown into a giant. The World Publishing Co. stockholders met in a confer ence at the World - Herald building Oct. 31. The details were outlined. No vote was registered against Kiewit and he had himself a newspaper. Lawyers Now Working Kiewit lawyers are now rounding out the mechanics of the change. A new corpora tion will be formed by the first of the year, probably in Delaware where corporation laws are "more flexible," Kie wit said. All 218,640 shareholders in the old World Publishing Co. will be paid and the rights of the old company, including Air Mail Still Among Cheaper Things in Life Few things in life are mail annually within the United States. At Christmas time, air mail can be particularly important, Eidswick noted. For example, he said, late cards sent by air mail can reach Chicago from Medford in less than 12 hours and Key West, Fla. in 18 hours. Another emergency stop gap is air parcel post, which moves with the speed of air letter mail. Sending parcels by air weighing more than one pound is often cheaper than using first class postage. Air mail and air parcel post re ceives lop priority on all scheduled airlines, which to tal more than 10.000 flishts daily throughout the nation. cheaper today than they were 45 years ago, but air mail still is, according to Postal Department Inspector J. A. Eidswick. On Jan. 7, when the air mail rate goes up one cent to 8 rents an ounce, the tervice will be In its 45th year, he noted. On May 15, 1918, when air mail was officially introduced In America, 6.600 letters were flown from Washington to New York City about 200 miles at a cost of 24 cents an ounce, which included a 10 cent special delivery fee. Today, Eidswick noted, more than 15 billion letters and post cards are sent by air the name, will be transferred to the new. Clark will serve on the board as chairman and Kiewit will serve as an unpaid direc tor. Kiewit said other direc tors are still unselccted. He listed as "probable" the fol lowing of a present strong Kiewit policy which calls for only company employees of the various 26 Kiewit hold ings to serve as directors. On Jan. 7. 1063, Kiewit or tome key officer will write a check for $28 million to the old company. Kiewit per sonally presented a $2 million check to show his good faith while the transaction was be ing worked out. Dinner It Held A Nov. 27 testimonial din ner was held after all the purchase arrangements had been made. Civic leader A. F. Jacobson said at the gathering "We can count as one of our great blessings that we have Peter Kiewit as a man and as a citizen with deeply dedicat ed sense of community respon sibility." Kiewit himself went to some pains to make it clear he would keep hands off the World-Herald's editorial pol icy. 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