Golden Owl, Louis George Buttell, dies at age 93

Louis George Buttell, a former Newsweek reporter, combat veteran of the Korean War and 53-year member of the National Press Club, died June 5 after a long illness.  He was 93 and lived in Leisure World in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Buttrell's career included reporting for Newsweek before and after serving as a Marine Corps platoon leader during combat in mountainous territory in the Korean War.  He later worked for the Voice of America, the Greenwich (Connecticut) Times, the March of Dimes and the American Podiatry Association. He served as president of the American Medical Writer's Association and received a president's citation from the Public Relations Society of America.

Born in New York City and raised in the Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens, Buttell graduated from Fordham Preparatory High School in 1944. He enlisted in the Navy at age 17 but World War II ended during training. He graduated from Holy Cross College in 1948, was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserves before being called to active duty in 1950. He served for nine months in Korea, leading men in combat and serving as a battalion communications officer.

Buttell married Betty Johnson in 1959 and had a daughter Amy and son John. They lived in Wheaton and Bethesda, Maryland, for many years before he and his wife moved to Leisure World in 1994. Survivors also include two grandsons.

During retirement, he enjoyed playing golf, entertaining and traveling in the U.S. and Europe. He and his wife organized annual reunions for his Korean War colleagues, and organized and dedicated a memorial to 11 who were killed in action. His family plans to hold a memorial service at a later date after a private mass and burial at St. Marys Catholic Church in Barnesville, Maryland.