Finding aid for the Paul Gapp papers

Biography of Paul Gapp

Paul Gapp (PG) was the Pulitzer Prize winning architecture critic for The Chicago Tribune.

He was born in Cleveland, Ohio on June 26, 1928. He attended Garfield Heights High School and graduated from Ohio University in 1950 with a degree in journalism. After graduation, PG took a position at the copy desk of the Columbus Dispatch (Ohio). He was soon promoted to the reporting staff of the Dispatch, and in 1955 became the editor of the Dispatch's Sunday Magazine.

In 1956. PG moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he would live for the remainder of his life. In Chicago, PG held a number of positions with newspapers and public relations firms. From 1956 to 1966, he worked for the now defunct Chicago Daily News in the capacities of reporter, editorial writer, and feature editor. In 1966, PG took a position as Executive Director of the Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (American Institute of Architects), and then joined the public relations firm Dale O'Brien & Company in early 1967, with primary responsibility for publicity for the John Hancock Center building project in Chicago. In 1969, PG left Dale O'Brien to become Director of Special Projects in the Office of the Vice-President of Public Affairs at the University of Chicago, where he directed the Urban Journalism Fellowship Program until 1972.

In 1972 PG went to work for the Chicago Tribune, first as the Assistant City Editor for Urban Affairs, and alter as the Tribune's first architecture critic. It was in the latter capacity that PG received the greatest acclaim. He was known not only for the accuracy of his critical eye, but also for his ability to translate criticism into a language that the layperson could understand and appreciate.

He won several awards for his work including a Pulitzer Prize for criticism in 1979. PG continued to write for the Tribune until his death from lung cancer complicated by emphysema on July 30, 1992.

PG held a number of institutional affiliations, reflecting his honored position among architects and journalists as well as other interests outside of journalism. He was the Executive Director of the Chicago Chapter and Illinois Council of the American Institute of Architects from 1966-1967m, and was made an honorary member of the Architect's Club of Chicago. PG served on the board of directors for the National Building Museum from 1980-1983, and was a member of the Metropolitan Housing and Planning Council (Chicago) from 1938-70.

One of PG's little known interests was stamps. This interest is reflected in his memberships in the American Philatelic Society and the South African Philatelic Fraternity (honorary). In addition, PG was the founder and first president (1963-1976) of the S. Allan Taylor Society, "an international society devoted to the collection of fantasies, locals, bogus issues, seals, fiscals, and other esoterica commonly known as 'Cinderella' material" as stated in the society's newsletter. The S. Allan Taylor Society is still in existence, according to The Encyclopedia of Associations (1993).

In addition to his Pulitzer in 1979, PG was the recipient of a number of other awards. Among them were: the Associated Press Award for best news reporting in 1965 and 1977, the American Institute of Architects (American Institute of Architects) Orchid Award in 1980, the Distinguished Alumnus Medal from Ohio University in 1980, the United Press International Award for feature writing in 1981, the Art World Award for distinguished criticism in 1983, and the Chicago Architecture Award from the Chicago Architecture Foundation in 1987.

Scope and Content

The Paul Gapp papers encompass a variety of materials relating to PG's career as a journalist, his stint as a public relations consultant, his personal history: including obituaries, eulogies, personal financial records such as check stubs from speaking engagements, awards, and travel expenses, and a number of resumes; correspondence, both professional and personal; information related to his receipt of numerous awards, including his 1979 Pulitzer Prize for criticism; his affiliation with architectural and journalistic associations; and his interest in stamp collecting.

The bulk of the collection consists of PG's published writings. These writings span PG's career including pieces from the Columbus Dispatch, the Chicago Daily News and the Chicago Tribune plus articles that appeared in various journals and magazines. They cover a wide range of topics from the expected realm of architecture criticism to editorials, movie reviews (most often for the magazine Today), pieces about the John Hancock Center (Chicago), articles written as Director of Urban Affairs for the University of Chicago, off beat series such as one about marriage counselors written by PG and Lois Willie for the Daily News in 1964, and PG's last piece on the controversial Picasso sculpture in front of the Chicago Civic Center. These articles are retained in magazine, newspaper, clipping, and typescript format.

Clippings have been photocopied in order to preserve them. In addition to the finished or draft copies of articles, the collection also contains PG's notes and research on a number of pieces. In cases where these research, materials were already organized into obvious thematic groupings, that organization has been retained by placing these materials in special sets under the Published Writings series. Other notes and printed materials PG used to write his articles can be found in the Miscellaneous series.

Other materials of special interest include PG's lectures and speeches from 1974-1990; a series on stamps which includes several volumes of the S. Allan Taylor Society Journal, which he edited, samples of stamps, and articles about stamps and stamp collection written by PG under the pen name "Helmuth Conrad"; and a series containing a number of slides and photographs: some related to lectures delivered by PG, some photos of PG at various functions and award ceremonies, and some miscellaneous. Although the description of the contents of the slide series is general, each slide in the series is labeled.

Some of the materials in the Miscellaneous series are also of special note. For instance: there are sets containing information on an Illinois congressional campaign for candidates Anthony Scariano and Mary Lee Inger in which it appears PG had some type of managerial role; there are a number of items dealing with PG's participation on the committee handling the 1976-1978 remodeling of the Chicago Tribune building; and there are materials related to the law suit filed by Donald Trump against PG and the Tribune for an article PG wrote in 1984 criticizing Trump's proposal to build a 150 story building in Manhattan. In addition to these, there are issues of newspapers that PG kept for personal reasons. Among them are several issues focusing on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November 1963.

Statement of Arrangement

Subject Terms

The following terms have been used to describe this collection.

Subjects:

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Preferred Citation

Researchers are requested to cite collection name, collection number, and Ohio University, Athens, Ohio in all footnotes and bibliographical references.

Other Finding Aid

A paper copy of the folder list is available.