It is with great sadness that we report the death of William Franklin McDonald. Bill passed away in September and would have turned 87 on March 5. Born in Independence, Iowa, he graduated with honors from the University of Notre Dame in 1958 with a B.S. in electrical engineering, earned a M.A. from the University of Illinois, and completed PhD coursework in experimental psychology.
He had an accomplished marketing career in Chicago, where he led consumer research for Amoco and served as president of the American Marketing Association’s Chicago Chapter. Throughout the 1970s and ’80s, he held the role of vice president at several different advertising agencies around the city and helped companies, including Kellogg, Kodak and General Mills, build their brands and reach new markets.
He was also a passionate architecture enthusiast and a fierce defender of historic buildings. He spent his retired years guiding tours of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home & Studio in Oak Park and The Rookery Building in Chicago’s Loop.
A dedicated father and loving husband, he is survived by his son, Michael, and his wife, Sarah. He is dearly missed and we wish him a happy birthday.
