American ambassador (1917?1988)
Mark Evans Austad
(April 1, 1917 ? October 20, 1988
[1]
[2]
) was an American radio and television commentator in
Washington D.C.
(under the name
Mark Evans
),
[3]
[4]
and served under
Gerald Ford
as
United States Ambassador to Finland
from 1975 to 1977, and as
United States Ambassador to Norway
from 1981 to 1984, under
Ronald Reagan
.
[2]
Biography
[
edit
]
Austad was born
Marcus Jacob Austad
[5]
in
Ogden, Utah
, to
Norwegian
immigrant parents,
[6]
Jacob L. and Signa Anderson Austad.
[7]
He was a member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(LDS Church) and served a three-year
[8]
mission
to
Finland
[9]
and
Norway
from 1936 to 1939.
[1]
From 1939 to 1941, he attended
Weber College
in Ogden where he was
student body president
and active in
public speaking
, in which he won first place in national competitions. Austad married the former Lola Brown in 1942 and they had three daughters.
[7]
Throughout his life Austad was active in the LDS Church,
[6]
and in addition to his missionary service he was also a
Sunday School
teacher in the 1970s in Washington, D.C.,
[3]
and was ordained as a
High Priest
.
[10]
Broadcasting
[
edit
]
Austad passed up law school for an opportunity to work in radio
[6]
as an announcer with
KSL
in
Salt Lake City
in 1941. He was soon drafted into the
U.S. Army Intelligence Corps
for service during
World War II
. To treat a pre-existing knee injury, he was sent to
Walter Reed General Hospital
in
Washington, D.C.
, where he was also assigned to the hospital's
public address system
referred to as
WRGH
. Among his duties was hosting a weekly program with prominent Washington personalities, such as
First Lady
Eleanor Roosevelt
. In late 1942 Austad also worked part-time for
WWDC
and then full-time upon his military discharge in 1945. After two years, he moved to the
CBS
station
WTOP
where he succeeded
Arthur Godfrey
on his own morning show.
[4]
[6]
[7]
Starting in 1960, Austad became a commentator at
WTTG
television and in 1961 he became vice president of public affairs at Metropolitan Broadcasting Company, later called
Metromedia
, where he stayed until 1981. During this time he continued to host other television shows such as "Panorama Potomac", "Face to Face", "
The Mark Evans Show
", and "Opinion in the Capitol",
[7]
which he hosted for 25 years.
[4]
He was also involved with television
documentaries
, including an award-winner on pollution called
1985
,
[1]
several on world topics, and one on his visit with
Albert Schweitzer
.
[7]
Civic activity
[
edit
]
Austad participated with various civic and national organizations. He served as a member of the citizens advisory board of the
Peace Corps
(appointed by
President
Richard Nixon
[8]
), a member of the executive board of the Washington, D.C.,
American Red Cross
, a member of the public affairs committee of the
United States Chamber of Commerce
, a member of the board of the
Arizona Heart Institute
, a member of the board of the
Disabled American Veterans
,
[4]
and a trustee of the
American Automobile Association
.
[8]
He received the
Silver Beaver Award
and in 1970 he was named Scouter of the Year by the National Capital Area Council of the
Boy Scouts of America
, where he participated for over 25 years.
[8]
He was invited on eight occasions to speak before the
National Geographic Society
.
[6]
For his "deep commitment to freedom and a strong national defense", in 1987 he received the Bronze Minuteman, the highest award of the
Utah National Guard
.
[4]
In 1971, in this period of civic involvement, Austad received an
honorary doctor of humanities degree
from
Weber State College
, his alma mater.
[7]
[10]
The school would also later honor Austad by naming its largest theater in its fine arts center The Mark Evans Austad Auditorium.
[11]
Austad served for two years as chairman of Washington D.C.'s
National Cherry Blossom Festival
,
[8]
and in 1973 and 1974 he was chairman of Washington D.C.'s
U.S. bicentennial
celebration.
[3]
[7]
Austad served on the
presidential inaugural
committees both times
Richard Nixon
was elected.
[7]
In 1969 Austad chaired the
Inaugural
Ball
committee,
[3]
and in 1972 he was vice chairman of the
inauguration
committee.
[2]
Nixon would appoint Austad to serve as one of the three public members of the United States delegation to the 28th
General Assembly of the United Nations
.
[3]
After Nixon's presidential resignation, his successor Gerald Ford appointed Austad as Ambassador to Finland. In 1980 Austad would again serve on an inaugural committee, this time for
Ronald Reagan
's
first election
, after which he was again appointed as an ambassador, this time to Norway.
[7]
Ambassadorships
[
edit
]
After his service to the Nixon administration and visibility in the Washington, D.C., community, Austad was appointed Ambassador to Finland in 1975. In this role, he was also a delegate to the Helsinki
Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe
which brought about the
Helsinki Accords
. Austad became the first American diplomat to be knighted
[6]
by Finland, under the
Order of the White Rose
and
Order of the Lion
.
[7]
In 1981, while living in
Wolfeboro, New Hampshire
[10]
and
Scottsdale, Arizona
, Austad was appointed Ambassador to Norway by
President
Ronald Reagan
.
[1]
He served in this position until 1984 and was well received
[6]
[12]
and awarded Norway's highest honor given to foreigners, the
Grand Cross of St. Olav's Order
, for his work in fighting heart disease.
[4]
[6]
However, he was known for contending with some Norwegians, including the opposition
Labor Party
, a local Norwegian council, student groups, and a newspaper that frequently ran such headlines as "Austad Strikes Again." He also gained notoriety in the Norwegian media for a 1983
[13]
incident in which police were called to a startled woman's home where Austad was loudly banging on the door at 3 a.m.
[14]
Austad claimed that after hosting an embassy cocktail party, he was on a late-night visit to a friend's house to plan their salmon fishing trip, but his taxi took him to the wrong address.
[14]
[15]
It was alleged that Austad was "apparently under the influence of alcohol" and had spent "half an hour knocking and kicking at her front door Wednesday in an attempt to get in."
[16]
Police merely dropped Austad back at his hotel,
[14]
but United States
House
Democrats
listed this incident as one of many ethics violations by Reagan Administration officials.
[16]
Austad viewed the criticism as inaccurate innuendo and media sensationalism, started by the British newspaper
Private Eye
and picked up by other papers and
wire services
. Austad sued Private Eye for libel and they
settled
for a "substantial sum", for damages and legal expenses, and printed an apology stating their "article constituted a most serious and damaging libel upon Ambassador Austad." Austad dismissed the controversy, saying Norway's largest newspaper,
Aftenposten
, praised him as the best U.S. ambassador they had ever had.
[13]
Death
[
edit
]
Austad died in 1988 at age 71 in Arizona. His funeral was held in Ogden, Utah, and his body was buried in Lindquist Washington Heights Memorial Park.
[4]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Ronald Reagan: Nomination of Mark Evans Austad To Be United States Ambassador to Norway"
.
Public Papers of the Presidents
.
The American Presidency Project
. December 1, 1981
. Retrieved
2009-07-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Mark E. Austad, 71; A Former Ambassador"
.
The New York Times
. October 25, 1988. p. B7
. Retrieved
2009-07-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"LDS Scene"
.
Ensign
: 92?93. November 1973
. Retrieved
2009-07-09
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
"Ex-envoy to Norway dies at 71"
.
Deseret News
. Salt Lake City, Utah. October 23, 1988
. Retrieved
2009-07-09
.
- ^
He changed his name to Mark Evans Austad in the 1940s.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
"Mark Evans Austad"
.
Deseret News
. October 25, 1988. Archived from
the original
on September 19, 2012
. Retrieved
2009-07-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
"A Register to the Ambassador Mark Evans Austad Collection"
(PDF)
.
Biographical Sketch
. Ogden, Utah:
Weber State College
Stewart Library Special Collections. July 1983. pp. v?vi. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 2010-07-08
. Retrieved
2009-07-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"Member Named U.N. Delegate"
.
Church News
.
Deseret News
. September 22, 1973
. Retrieved
2009-07-13
.
- ^
"Church Member Nominated Ambassador to Finland"
.
Ensign
. Salt Lake City, Utah:
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
: 78. March 1975
. Retrieved
2009-07-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Former envoy to Finland is chosen for Norway post"
.
Deseret News
. Salt Lake City, Utah. August 22, 1981. Archived from
the original
on October 21, 2015
. Retrieved
2009-07-13
.
- ^
"Mark Evans Austad Auditorium"
.
Val A Browning Center for the Performing Arts
.
Weber State University
. Archived from
the original
on 2008-10-07
. Retrieved
2009-07-13
.
- ^
Bowen, Norman R. (June 8, 1982).
"
'Anchorman Austad' is a genial ambassador"
.
Deseret News
. Retrieved
2009-07-13
.
- ^
a
b
"Ex-envoy wins settlement with London newspaper"
.
Deseret News
. March 23, 1986
. Retrieved
2009-07-13
.
- ^
a
b
c
Kitfield, James (September 5, 2001).
"Tapping donors for diplomatic posts carries risks"
.
National Journal
. Retrieved
2009-07-09
.
- ^
Sarlin, Benjamin (February 20, 2009).
"Obama's Man in London"
.
The Daily Beast
. Retrieved
2009-07-09
.
- ^
a
b
See item #115 in
Schroeder, Patricia
(May 21, 1985).
"Reagan Administration Ethics Dishonor Roll Addendum"
(PDF)
.
Congressional Record
. Washington D.C.:
United States Government Printing Office
: H 3441 (PDF page 39)
. Retrieved
2009-07-09
.
External links
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]
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Envoy Extraordinary
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Ambassador Extraordinary
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