Newspaper Article 1972 – Herald-Tribune’s assistant editor dies suddenly

Herald-Tribune’s assistant editor dies suddenly

Mr Norman Ivo Greig, assistant editor of the Hawke’s Bay Herald-Tribune, died suddenly today at his home in Nelson St, Hastings.

Mr Greig, who was 63, had spent a lifetime in journalism, all of it in Hawke’s Bay, firstly on the Hawke’s Bay Herald, and since 1938 on the Herald-Tribune.

A quietly-spoken and unassuming man, Mr Greig commanded the respect of his colleagues, and of the many contributors to the Herald-Tribune.

His special interest in recent years was the editorship of the Herald- Tribune book page, and he was widely known among reviewers, publishing houses, and librarians of this district.

He had been for many years Press Association agent in Hastings and executives of the New Zealand Press Association today paid tribute to his work.

The manner of his passing this morning was typical of Norman Greig, a man conscientious to the highest degree.

As was his normal routine, he presided over a morning news conference, then unbeknown to staff members he asked a colleague to drive him home, saying he felt unwell, but would be back at work later in the day. An hour and a half later he had died.

Mr Greig was born in Invercargill and came to Napier as a child. His father was first assistant at the Napier Central School and Mr Greig attended that school before going to the Napier Boys’ High School.

There he was a prefect and a member of the first rugby fifteen. At school he further developed his natural ability as a swimmer and diver, which later was to earn for him a New Zealand intermediate diving title.

Later in life while picnicking with his family at Waimarama, Mr Greig rescued a woman from heavy surf and in the process snapped his achilles tendon, an injury which required surgical repair.

For Mr Greig his link with the Napier Boys’ High School was always a matter of considerable pride. This year he had made arrangements for a minor eye operation, but delayed this so that he could attend the school’s centennial celebrations.

When he left school in 1928 he joined the staff of the Hawke’s Bay Herald in Napier, and as a cub reporter began his 44 years in journalism.

When the Napier earthquake struck in 1931, Mr Greig was attending a Hawke’s Bay County Council meeting and he and a colleague were about to leave the county chambers when the first jolt brought down a piece of masonry, killing a young girl on the footpath a pace away from where they were walking.

Mr Greig became chief reporter of the Hawke’s Bay Herald and when that paper’s printing plant was destroyed and the paper was printed by the Tribune he became a liaison editorial staff member between the two papers.

In 1938, when the two papers merged, Mr Greig became chief sub-editor of the Herald-Tribune.

Then his career in journalism was interrupted by Army, […] during the war, but he […] returned to […] for a time was […] reporter in Napier. […] again became chief […]. Mr Greig was appointed news editor of the paper and in the early 19[…]. assumed responsibility of editing the weekly book page.

Two years ago he became assistant editor.

A troublesome football injury prevented Mr Greig from continuing participation [part of image missing] in field sports, but he was a keen angler, both locally and at Taupo.

Because of this he took a particular interest in the Herald-Tribune’s shooting and fishing page and in this field also had a wide range of friends and contacts.

Mr Greig is survived by his widow, Mrs Margaret Greig, by two daughters, Julie (Mrs R. S. R. Turner, Tawa), and Rosemary (Mrs E. T. S. Ormond, Hastings), and by a son, Christopher, Hastings. A funeral service will be held in St Andrew’s Church Hastings, on Monday at 11am

[…] the merging of the two newspaper, first as a liaison staff member and later as chief sub-editor of the Herald-Tribune and later news editor then assistant editor.

The special interest of this quiet and unassuming man, in addition to the day-to-day production of the newspaper, was his editorship of the Herald- Tribune’s book page, a task he enthusiastically undertook following the retirement of his colleague, Mr Long.

Photo caption – Mr Greig