Becker, William H.

November 10, 1916 - January 27, 2010

Bill Becker, 93, writer and editor, died peacefully at home in 
Santa Monica Canyon, California on January 27. 

Born to Danish immigrants in Chicago, Becker attended the 
College of Pacific (now UOP) where he played football for 
legendary coach, Amos Alonzo Stagg. At UOP he met Rachel 
Martin whom he married in June 1940. 

As a reporter he covered 1950's atomic tests, political 
campaigns, the International Geophysical Year in Antarctica in 
1957, science and sports. A life-long athlete, Becker covered 25 
Rose Bowl games and 5 World Series. 

Becker's versatile career included 12 years with the Associated 
Press, 18 years with the New York Times, and 16 years of 
science writing and editing for Caltech's Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory. 

A Santa Monica Canyon resident and dedicated body-surfer 
since 1959, he averaged 200 swims per year for 30 years, and 
continued riding waves at Will Rogers State Beach into his 
mid-eighties. The hillside resplendent with azaleas, camellias, 
and rhododendrons remains as a legacy of planning, care and 
hard work.

He is survived by his wife of 69 years, Rachel, three daughters 
and their husbands, Marilyn and Victor Ichioka of Berkeley, CA, 
Amy and James Angel of Fairfax, VA, and Kathryn and Clinton 
Baer of Carlsbad, CA, 14 grandchildren and 4 great-
grandchildren. He was predeceased by two daughters, Christine 
Niednagel and Karen Becker. 

Published in Los Angeles Times on February 7, 2010