Richard Lyons Obituary

Richard D. Lyons CHARLESTON - Through nearly a half-century as a journalist, it was his love of history, literature, and science - and an unquenchable thirst for travel - that informed Richard Lyons's reporting and lively repartee. A correspondent for four daily newspapers, including nearly 30 years at the New York and Washington bureaus of The New York Times, his assignments were wide-ranging, including the NASA space program, Civil Rights, Watergate, Congress, and the United Nations. Besides The Times, his stories appeared on the front pages of the New York Daily News, the Memphis (Tenn.) Commercial Appeal, and the Plainfield (N.J.) Courier, which gave him his first job as a reporter. He also worked for a time for Reuters in London. Mr. Lyons died at home on March 13 in Charleston, SC, where he had lived in retirement for nearly nine years with his wife, the former Susan Pilchik Rosenbaum. He was 84, and had vascular dementia for several years. Though he passed his last years in the South Carolina Lowcountry, he always thought of himself as a New Yorker: It was where his ideas took shape and where he worked for the longest span in his career. New York was also where he was born, on May 31, 1928, the only son of John M. Lyons and the former Mary Francis. He grew up in a house that straddled the border of Queens and Nassau Counties, enabling him to graduate from Great Neck High School, one of the nation's best, and with a full scholarship to Brown University, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in geology. Mr. Lyons served as a navigator in the U.S. Air Force from 1951 to 1953, then went on to earn a Master's Degree in Journalism from Columbia University. Until recently, his wife recalled, he was ever on the go, planning at least two interesting trips a year. Whether for work or on his own time, Mr. Lyons traveled to all but two of the United States, and to nearly every continent. He especially loved southern France, where he and his wife took several vacations. With equal passion, he would pore through up to five newspapers daily, commenting on content, page layout, headlines and the quality of the photography. In recent years, he mourned the demise of many of the country's newspapers, though his love for journalism and the pride he took in having been part of the Fourth Estate never waned. Even in his last months, when dementia had robbed his mind of its acuity, he would greet the day by asking his wife, "Is there any news news today?" meaning, she explained, did anything of consequence happen overnight. He was as well a voracious reader, of mysteries and historical biography. A child of the Depression whose family was unable to provide him with music lessons, he taught himself to appreciate most forms of music, reveling in classic composition, jazz and the best of rock and roll. He would recall with pride that while working for the Memphis paper he was one of Elvis Presley's earliest interviewers. In New York, he was a member of the Silurians, a club of retired journalists, and the Players Club on Gramercy Park. Mr. Lyons was divorced from his first wife, the late Margaret McKenna, with whom he had two children who survive, David Lyons of New York City and Abigail Wright of Glen Innes, Australia. He is also survived by two step-children, Adam Rosenbaum of Studio City, CA, and Tanya Gat of New York City, two granddaughters and four step-grandchildren. He also leaves a collie, Bonnie Belle, his first and much beloved dog. A sister, Mary Brochard, died before him. No funeral services have been planned. Donations in Mr. Lyons's memory have been suggested to Respite Care Charleston, 405 King Street, Charleston 29403, and Odyssey Hospice, Gentiva Hospice Foundation, 7801Mesquite Bend Drive, Suite 105, Irving, TX 75063. Visit our guestbook at www.legacy.com/obituaries/ charleston