Wesley Pruden passes at 83 after remarkable six decade career

Wesley Pruden would have undoubtedly wanted to spend his final hours at his keyboard, deftly deflating the pompous, entitled and arrogant of the political establishment, and he came awfully close.

The venerable Washington Times editor, columnist and journalism institution was found dead Wednesday morning at his home, his passing coming hours after putting in a full day at the newsroom on New York Avenue in Northeast, where he had worked since 1982, four months after the newspaper’s founding.

He was 83. His remarkable career began 67 years ago as a teenage copy boy in Arkansas, making him among the few old-school newsmen whose sharp political acumen, elegant writing style, and keen sense of the absurd allowed him to remain as relevant in the digital age as he was in the days when the rumpled shirts of newsmen were splattered with ink.

After stepping down as editor-in-chief in 2008, Mr. Pruden assumed the title of editor emeritus, writing staff editorials, helping edit the Commentary section, and filing his twice-weekly column, “Pruden on Politics,” a must-read for decades in Washington, D.C.

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