Emil Corwin, Longest-Serving Federal Spokesman -30-

In the good old days of public relations and journalism, the symbol -30- was often used to signal the end of a press release or news story.  Today I use the symbol in my headline to pay tribute to Emil Corwin, who died on March 15 at his home in Chevy Chase, Md., according to the Washington Post.

Apparently, Mr. Corwin was one of the longer-serving spokesmen for the Food and Drug Administration, but, as of now, he was also the oldest public affairs officer to ever have been employed by the federal government. Mr. Corwin retired at age 96, in 1999.  He was 107 when he died.

Photo credit: Flickr user derekGavey (Creative Commons)

The Post said that he joined the FDA in 1974 at age 70 — generally a time when most people are starting to enjoy retirement, not start a new career.

I have covered the FDA since the late 1980s, but, much to my chagrin now, never interacted with Mr. Corwin that I remember.  It may be because he largely handled food and dietary supplement issues.  Oh, the things Mr. Corwin must have witnessed in his long career.