The Growing Ridders

Since Herman Ridder, an immigrant's son, bought the German-language New York Staats-Zeitiing in 1890, the publishing Ridder clan has grown to three sons and eight grandsons--and their newspaper empire has kept pace. This week Ridder Publications Inc. bought the only two dailies in Pasadena. Calif., the evening Star-News (circ. 41,120) and the morning Independent (circ. 35,588). Reported total cost: $4,500,000. That made six California newspapers picked up by the Ridders in 3 1/2 years, giving them a monopoly not only in Pasadena but also in Long Beach and San Jose--all fast-growing areas.

In all. the Ridder family--now headed by Joseph E.. 69, his twin. Victor, and | Bernard H., 73--owns 13 newspapers (not counting the Seattle Times, in which it controls 49.5% of the stock), plus four radio stations and two TV stations. "This expansion will stop," said a Ridder employee last week, "when you run out of Ridder boys." The eight Ridder grandsons-who all help to run the papers, have already sired a dozen sons of their own. To help strangers sort out the clan, grandson Herman H., 47, president of the company, carries an oversized business card with a family tree diagrammed neatly on the back.

To run the Pasadena papers as publisher, grandson Bernard J.. 42. a balding Princeton man and exMarine, this week takes leave of his job as publisher of Manhattan's Journal of Commerce. (It will go to his brother Eric.) Bernard, who came up through several Ridder dailies, plans to publish the two Pasadena newspapers in the Star-News building and combine their Sunday editions; he will probably sell the Independent building and surplus equipment. Independent Editor Fred G. Runyon, 53, son of the paper's cofounder, will become editor in chief of both dailies. There will be no other executive changes, and the papers will keep their local flavor. In keeping with the new style of newspaper empire building, the Ridders tend to leave each paper fairly free to steer its own course.

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