Longtime printer for Sun, union official Smith dies

Thursday, Oct. 8, 1998 | 11:19 a.m.

Stanford "Stan" Smith, a longtime Sun composing room worker who regularly laid out the sports pages and served as secretary-treasurer of the local typographical union, has died. He was 74.

Smith, who was employed by the Sun from 1966-84 and founded Time Printing in 1981, died Sunday at his home following a lengthy illness.

Services for the Las Vegas resident of 34 years were today at Palm Mortuary-Cheyenne. Interment was in Palm Memorial Park Northwest.

"Stan had the patience to work with the sports agate (newspaper jargon for the small type print such as box scores) so he was a natural to do the sports pages," said Rex Taylor, the Sun's production director and a longtime friend.

"He took his job as secretary-treasurer of Typographical Union Local 933 very seriously. He made sure the business of the union was in order. He saw that the bills were paid and the dues were collected."

Later as Taylor, a former plate-room worker rose to the rank of supervisor, he found himself on the other side of the fence from Smith. While Smith represented the union's interests, Taylor represented the Sun management's interests. Yet they remained amicable and there was never a labor dispute.

"Stan was a good union man and he also was a good company man," Taylor said.

Born Dec. 23, 1923, in New York City, Smith learned the printing trade there in 1945 then moved around the country working in union print shops.

"After my parents had their sixth child, dad decided it was time to settle down in one town -- and he loved Las Vegas from the start," said Randal Smith, who co-founded Time Printing, 1224 Western Ave., with Stan and bought him out when he retired in 1991.

"Dad often joked that he discovered Las Vegas (in 1964) and everyone else followed him here."

Smith started working at the Sun on Sept. 8, 1966, and left on Aug. 29, 1984, according to company records. He quit to devote his full attention to his private business. Smith also founded Typocomp, a typography and composition company that is no longer in operation.

"My father was never a sports fan but he composed the Sun's sports pages for many years because he was the kind of man who did his job -- and he did it well -- even if he didn't necessarily like a particular assignment.

"He was very loyal to the Sun and (late publisher) Hank Greenspun. And I owe everything I am to my dad."

From 1969-77, Stan's wife Mildred "Millie" Smith, worked for the Sun, operating a keyboard tape puncher, a machine that codes stories on tape for electronic transfer to photographic paper for paste up on the pages.

During their retirement years, the Smiths enjoyed traveling in their motor home. He also was adept at repairing his own car, building rooms in his home and fixing appliances -- projects that occupied much of his time, Randal said.

In addition to his wife and son, Smith is survived by four other sons, Ronald, Lawrence, Kevin and Bradley Smith, all of Las Vegas; a daughter, Patricia Lowder, also of Las Vegas; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.