WE take the occasion this week -" to pay tribute to a man whose name has appeared on this page for 27 years, and who during that time made an incalculable contribution to what was printed in the pages of TIME--and thereby to U.S. journalism. After serving as reporter, writer, senior editor, managing editor and editor of TIME, Roy Alexander last week, at 67, retired.

His eleven years as managing editor, the key editorial post on TIME, from 1949 to 1960, add up to the longest period anyone has held that demanding position. He brought to the job an array of talents and interests that humble most men. His Latin is a bit rusty now, but he used to read the classics in that language and in Greek as well. He is a serious student of philosophy, theology and history; he flew airplanes until a few years ago, and still drives sports cars in the manner of Jimmy Clark. He appreciates an efficient carburetor as much as a great performance at the opera. His essential commitment is to the pursuit of knowledge.

Roy Alexander-was born in Omaha, graduated from St. Louis University, broke into journalism on the St. Louis Star, then was a reporter and assistant city editor on the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A cover-to-cover reader of TIME (usually in the bathtub, he once recalled) since its launching in 1923, he came to work for this magazine in 1939 at a time when one of his many interests turned out to be of special value. A Stateside marine at the end of World War I, he had maintained an active interest in military affairs, particularly aviation. For 18 years he flew with the 110th Observation Squadron of the Missouri National Guard; he was mustered out, when he moved to New York, as a major and squadron commander. His experiences in military matters made him eminently fit to edit TIME'S WORLD BATTLEFRONTS section in World War II. Some of the best and most knowledgeable writing about that war appeared there, and as a result, TIME became must reading from the beaches of Peleliu to the desks of the Pentagon.

As managing editor, Roy had a much-admired knack for quick decisions, unimpeded by any fear of making a mistake. He also had a great rapport and a mutual confidence with the staff. Accepting cheers from all hands at a staff farewell party last week, he responded with characteristic warmth, modesty and brevity. "I think I realize now that I have meant something to all of you," he said. "You have all meant a great deal more to me."

As Roy ended his service to TIME--now to spend his time largely with his wife, seven children and 19 grandchildren--his longtime colleague, Editorial Chairman Henry R. Luce, paid him a tribute to which all of us subscribe: "We are all in debt to Roy Alexander for his outstanding performance. I salute him as a grand master of the great game of Who, What, When and Why. As managing editor, he combined an innate sense of fair play with the clear courage of his own convictions."

*Two brothers of Roy's made their own mark in journalism. Jack Alexander wrote for The New Yorker and the Saturday Evening Post; the Rev. Calvert Alexander, S.J., was for 25 years editor of Jesuit Missions.

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