Richard Groves, publishing executive
Richard H. Groves, 86, formerly of Berwyn, a publishing company executive, died Saturday, July 16, of heart failure at Paoli Hospital.
Richard H. Groves, 86, formerly of Berwyn, a publishing company executive, died Saturday, July 16, of heart failure at Paoli Hospital.
He had lived at Shannondell at Valley Forge for the last six years.Mr. Groves was born in Birmingham, Mich., and graduated from the University of Michigan with a business degree. He earned a master's in business administration from the university's Ross School of Business, graduating first in his class.
Mr. Groves served in the Navy from 1952 to 1954, and after being honorably discharged, started his career in the management training program at General Electric Co. in Valley Forge. He was recruited by company executives to join the Chilton Publishing Co. in Radnor.
In 1961, he was named publisher of Chilton's flagship, Iron Age Magazine.
Mr. Groves became the company's publishing vice president and then its executive vice president and CEO, responsible for all Chilton magazines, market research, printing and book publications, including the Chilton Automotive Manuals.
In 1980, Mr. Groves became founder, president, and CEO of International Thomson Business Press, a subsidiary of what is now Thomson Corp. He acquired Medical Economics, a publishing company that brought with it the Physicians' Desk Reference.
From 1985 to 1989, Mr. Groves was president, CEO and chief operating officer of Andrews Communications, a publisher of litigation journals in Edgemont.
At the time, "there was no way to know when companies went bankrupt. . . . This was a way for them to keep up with what was what" in their industry," said son Richard "Rick" H. Jr.
In 1989, Mr. Groves became president and publisher of Legal Communications Ltd., which acquired the Legal Intelligencer, a daily legal newspaper, from Packard Press that year. He made improvements to the editorial content before retiring in the mid-1990s.
He served on the board of directors for Chilton Co., the Association of Business Publishers, and many other professional organizations.
An avid golfer, Mr. Groves played on the University of Michigan's golf team and, later, made a point to play on the top 100 courses in the United States and Britain. He was a member of Pine Valley Golf Club and the Aronimink Golf Club for more than 50 years.
"Golf was his great passion. That's what he was known for," his son said. Much of his social life revolved around the sport.
He was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma Honorary Fraternity, Phi Kappa Phi Honorary Fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, and the Merion Cricket Club.
Besides his son, he is survived by his wife of 65 years, Mary Ann Wilkinson Groves; a daughter, Virginia Nambiar; and seven grandchildren. A son, Charles, died in 2001.
A memorial gathering is being planned for September.
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