Walter Trohan

Walter Trohan (July 4, 1903 – October 30, 2003) was a 20th-century American journalist, known as a long-time Chicago Tribune reporter (1929–1971) and its bureau chief in Washington, D.C. (1949–1968).

Background Trohan was born on July 4, 1903, in Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania. In 1920, he family moved to the South Side of Chicago, where his father was a wholesale grocer. He attended Bowen High School, reported for a bit at the Daily Calumet, and in 1926 graduated from the University of Notre Dame.

In 1947, Trohan became "executive director" of the Tribune'''s Washington bureau through 1949.

Douglas MacArthur In 1949, Trohan became Washington bureau chief (or "director") until 1969. In 1951, Trohan was known for ferreting out the fact that Truman planned to fire General Douglas MacArthur, the commander of UN forces in Korea. When Truman found out that Trohan knew about his plan, he publicly announced his decision via General Omar Bradley and robbed Trohan of the scoop. He experienced censorship during World War II as well.

Personal life Around 1929, Trohan married Carol Rowland. They had two daughters and a son. and the Gridiron Club in 1967.

Trohan and his wife lived in County Clare, Ireland, from 1971 to 1978 and then returned to live in Columbia, Maryland.

Death Trohan died at 100 on October 28, 2003, in a hospital in Bethesda, Maryland.

Legacy

Trohan is the source for much unique information about Franklin Roosevelt's health that turned up in various publications and FBI documents. He was the source for much of a controversial article published by Dr. Karl C. Wold in Look Magazine in 1947. He also collaborated with James A. Farley in ghost writing his memoirs. Trohan's papers are housed at the Herbert Hoover Library, near Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Work

In 1975 Trohan wrote his memoirs and titled the book Political Animals. In the book, he recalled how when he arrived in Washington in 1934 as an assistant correspondent in the Tribunes Washington Bureau. He could remember freely wandering Roosevelt's White House and interviewing cabinet members and other staff. Due to tightened security measures, this freedom no longer exists.

Political Animals: Memoirs of a Sentimental Cynic'' (New York: Doubleday, 1975)