Eldon Sellers

1921 - 2016

Eldon Sellers

Born in Aurora, Illinois on March 9, 1921 passed away at the Queen of the Valley Hospital in Napa, California on April 19, 2016 after a brief illness.

Eldon was a gifted violinist, a child prodigy who gave concerts at the age of 8 and performed at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair. His first violin cost $10.00 and was purchased from Sears Roebuck. He attended Oberlin College and received his degree in music from the American Conservatory of Music. Music was one of the most important parts of his life and he played with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Chamber Orchestra, the Peninsula Symphony, Napa Valley Symphony (over 30 years), and the Bohemian Club Orchestra.

Eldon left college to enlist in the Army Air Force in 1941 and served as a pilot from 1941-1946. His unit, the 315th Troop Carrier Group was assigned to the Ninth Air Force in Western Europe and was highly decorated for its combat parachute infantry drops during the Invasion of France (Operation Overlord); the airborne invasion of the Netherlands (Operation Market-Garden); and the airborne crossing of the Rhine River (Operation Varsity). Captain Sellers was awarded the Air Medal twice for his services. He loved being a pilot and as a civilian continued flying for over 40 years.

His family and friends always enjoyed the many fascinating stories that he drew from the rich fabric of his life and his amazing memory. And to our constant surprise he could always tell one that had never been heard before.

An unexpected but truly special chapter in Eldon's life was when he and Hugh Hefner co-founded Playboy in Chicago in 1953. He is most well-known for giving the magazine its name, Playboy. During his 15 year tenure Eldon served in many capacities including Executive Vice President of Advertising. His last job was Executive Vice President of Special Projects where he was in charge of the renovation and the transition of the Palmolive building to the Playboy Building in Chicago. Eldon loved the challenges that Playboy provided and still kept in touch with many of his friends from the Playboy years.

After 15 years at Playboy, Eldon chose yet another career path – the law. Inspired by the legal team at Playboy and the impact of the law on the success of the magazine he took a sabbatical in 1968 and moved to San Francisco to attend Golden Gate Law School. He passed the bar at age 50. He spent many hours working for legal aid and later opened a law firm in Tahoe City with Bill Newsom. He was a member of the Bar for 45 years and made his last court appearance on March 24, 2016.

Eldon was noted for his unshakeable loyalty to the Chicago Cubs. One of his most memorable experiences was hanging out with greats such as Ernie Banks and Fergie Jenkins while attending the Cubs Fantasy Camp. Another was throwing out the first pitch at Wrigley Field on his 90th birthday while surrounded by all of his family! Eldon also loved the 49ers and Warriors and we all spent many wonderful times at sporting events.

The Sellers family would like to thank Eldon's doctors and their staffs for the excellent medical care and support that he received from them for many years. And, in particular, thanks the team at the Queen that treated him so honorably in his final days.

Eldon was a remarkable man. His keen intellect, curiosity and tenacity made him interested in learning and sharing everything he could. He loved telling stories, traveling, good food and wines, playing (and winning) games of all sorts: logic puzzles, ping-pong, pool, bridge, dominoes, darts and even tic tac toe with his grandchildren.

Eldon is survived by his wife, Nancy and their two daughters, Cameron and Prentice; his former wife Jane Borson and their two sons, William (wife Jill) and Rorick (wife Timmi), and his sister Donna Joyce Sellers. In addition he had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren with a fifth one on the way. His family and friends adored him and are so proud of this incredible, adventurous, vivacious man who was their hero. It is a profound loss.

Contributions in Eldon's honor may be made to a charity of your choice or one that promotes music or sports. A celebration of Eldon's life will be held at a later date.