John Richman (1927-2017)

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John M. Richman

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – John M. Richman, former head of Kraft Foods who, for close to 60 years, spent part or all of his summers at Clearwater Lake, died Saturday, Jan. 9, 2017, in West Palm Beach, Fla. after a brief illness. He was 89.

Richman began coming to Clearwater Lake in the early 1950s, after he married Farmington native Priscilla Frary. The two purchased their first home there in the 1980s and, after Richman’s retirement, began to spend the entire summer on the lake with family and a large group of close friends.

Along with his wife, Richman was a major benefactor to the Farmington area, providing gifts to the University of Maine at Farmington, Franklin Memorial Hospital and Old South Church, where they were members and where their daughter Cathie served as pastor.

Richman was born in New York City on November 9, 1927, the son of Arthur Richman, a playwright, and Madeline Marshall, a stage actress. He attended the Browning School and Yale University, both on scholarships, and then enrolled in Harvard Law School. In Cambridge, he met Priscilla, and they were married in 1951.

Richman began his career in New York with Leve, Hecht, Hadfield & McAlipin, a law firm whose largest client was J. Paul Getty. In 1952, he joined National Dairy Products, a precursor to Kraft Foods, as an attorney. He steadily rose within Kraft’s legal department, eventually moving with the company from New York to Chicago and becoming Kraft general counsel in 1973. He was tapped as the company’s Chairman and CEO in 1979.

Richman’s career capstone was the 1988 merger of Kraft with Philip Morris, a $13.1 billion transaction that, at the time, was the second-biggest merger in US history and created the world’s largest consumer products company.

Richman served as director of several major public and private corporations, including Philip Morris Corporation, Exxon Corporation, USX (formerly US Steel), Bank of America, Continental Bank and R.R. Donnelley and Sons Company. He was also Chairman of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, trustee of Northwestern University and director of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

He is survived, in addition to his wife Priscilla, by two daughters, Cathie and Diana, and five grandchildren, Kate, Jenny, Alec, Paul and Mark.

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6 Comments

  1. Sincere condolences also to Cathy, Tim and their family. John was a striking and familiar presence in our area for a long time and he will certainly be missed.

  2. Cousin Priscilla had a long and happy marriage with John. Always a genial host down at the Lake. I saw him with Priscilla, Cathie and Diane at the Homestead just this summer. I should have seen more of him, but such thoughts seem to grow more and more common in my seventies.

  3. My deepest condolences to Pril,Cathy,Tim, Diana, Jim and families. I feel honored to know John, he was such a wonderful man. He loved his family as much as any man I have ever known. He touched so many lives with that beautiful smile and loving presence. Without a doubt he will be missed by many. What a man , what a life. My prayers are with you, my heart breaks for you. Love always. Lynn and the Fiddleheads crew

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