Philanthropist and Newspaper Owner, John Cowles Jr., Dies

John Cowles Jr.,a Minneapolis newspaper owner and philanthropist died in his home in Minneapolis on March 17.

He died at 82 and had lung cancer, his son Jay Cowles told The Washington Post.

Cowles Jr. helped form Minneapolis into the city it is today by helping fund projects like the Metrodome and merging The Star and The Tribune into the Star Tribune.

As strong supporter of the art institutions in Minneapolis he helped raise $2.2 million to open the Guthrie Theater in 1963 with a production of "Hamlet," The New York Times reported.

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak described Cowles Jr. as one of the most important civic figures in the last 50 years, reported the Star Tribune.