PETER MILLONES

MILLONES--Peter. New York Times reporter, metropolitan editor, assistant managing editor and a faculty member of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, died of lymphoma on January 7, 2019 at his home in Narragansett, RI after a long illness. He was 82 years old. Mr. Millones, who grew up in Danbury, CT and White Plains, NY, graduated from Columbia College in 1958 and served in the US Army's Psychological War unit from 1960 to 1962. During his undergraduate years at Columbia, the aspiring journalist attended classes during the day and worked as a copy boy at night for The New York Times. As the Times's Columbia Correspondent, he wrote more than 200 articles, ranging from official news events to random feature stories describing the (often hilarious) vagaries of life on campus. At one point he noticed that an increasing number of students were bringing brown bags and munching away during class. He had just finished interviewing dozens of students and faculty members for the article when he was summoned to the office of Jacques Barzun, the legendary - and formidable - Provost of the University, who was not amused by lighthearted descriptions of life at the august university. As soon as Peter sat down the Provost reached across the desk, picked up Peter's notebook which contained notes from all the interviews, placed it in a desk drawer which he locked and put the key in his pocket and announced the interview was over. Horrified, Peter raced out the door and revisited as many of the faculty members he could find whom he had previously interviewed, then took the subway to The New York Times and rewrote the story. History has not recorded the look on Provost Barzun's face when he opened his New York Times the next day. Among many other talents, Mr. Millones was a first class cook, mostly self-taught, but his love of cooking provided years of memorable meals for his family and their guests. His children swear that he never gave them a bad meal. After graduating from Columbia, Mr. Millones joined the New York Times and stayed for 32 years as reporter, editor and executive. A colleague at The Times described Mr. Millones this way: Through all his watching and listening Millones is decisive and opinionated and not much addicted to gossip. Above all, he has a sixth sense for office vibrations. One day when he was a reporter, the metropolitan editor suddenly swooped down on him and two others and without giving an inkling of what he had in mind, asked "Are you busy? Are you busy? Are you busy?" The first two excused themselves, sensing that they were about to be sent to cover a fire in the outer reaches of Brooklyn. Millones paused for a second eying the editor as if he were the dealer and the office were one vast blackjack game, then said, "I'm not busy." The editor smiled, gave him the rest of the day off and a box seat to the World Series at Yankee Stadium. Survivors include his wife of 50 years, Deirdre Carmody Millones; their son, Peter Millones, Jr. and his spouse, Jennifer; their daughter, Christina Millones Clifford and her husband, Brian and six grandchildren, Malloy, Maeve and Frances Clifford; Macy, Graydon and Lucy Millones. A funeral mass will be said at 10:00am on January 11, 2019 at St. Thomas More Church, 53 Rockland St., Narragansett, RI 02882. In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made in memory of Peter Millones to the Domestic Violence Resource Center, 61 Main Street, Wakefield, RI. 02879.