GILBERT MAURER, MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE HEARST CORPORATION, WILL SPEAK TO THE Y'S MEN NOVEMBER 15TH

On Thursday, November 15th, Gilbert Maurer, member of the Board of Directors of the Hearst Corporation, will speak to the Y's Men of Westport/Weston. His subject is “The Building of the New Hearst Tower .” In his talk he will cover the story of the building of the Tower and its impact on both the Corporation and the New York architectural scene. The meeting begins at 10AM at the Saugatuck Congregational Church, 245 Post Road East.

  For 33 years, Gilbert C. Maurer has been at the center of growth, change and creativity at Hearst Corporation.

He is currently a member of the Corporation's Board of Directors as well as a testamentary trustee under the will of William Randolph Hearst, having successfully served for eight years as Hearst's chief operating officer, until 1998. Prior to becoming COO, Maurer led Hearst Magazines as its president for 14 years. Under his stewardship, the division launched or acquired six new magazines and three circulation distribution companies. International operations expanded to more than fifty countries. Circulation grew by more than eight million copies per month, and ad revenues grew to more than four times the 1976 total.

Maurer's interest in architecture and the arts brought him an assignment that has helped change New York City's skyline-and Hearst. In 1999, he was named by Hearst's Board to head an architectural committee that would select an architect to construct a new company headquarters in New York. The new Hearst Tower would rise above the original Eighth Avenue headquarters built in 1928 by William Randolph Hearst. Maurer and his committee selected one of the best architects in the world: London 's Lord Norman Foster, known for projects that combine striking modernity with advanced and environmentally friendly building technologies.

"In the process of choosing the right architect to undertake our headquarter's expansion, it became clear that this individual should have previously demonstrated facility with both preexisting and new structures," Maurer said. "Lord Foster impressed us greatly with his entire body of work, particularly his vision for the Reichstag in Berlin , the British Museum and several other commissions which required him to subject his visionary original designs to the historical integrity of the existing structure."

Hearst Corporation made a bold decision to proceed with construction of Lord Foster's "diagrid" -designed Tower the month after the attacks on the World Trade Center. Hearst was the first company to make such a post 9-11 commitment to the City of New York

"New York City is a developer's city, and the power of real estate development should not be underestimated politically, financially and environmentally," Maurer said. "I believe that Hearst Tower will influence developers in New York for a long time to come. It demonstrates that good design pays in all respects- aesthetically, functionally and environmentally. The Tower will also influence the nature of the Corporation. It creates a new matrix of how we perceive ourselves, what our role in the world is and what it can be."

Maurer is a sought-after industry speaker, and last year delivered his memorable "Rules" speech to the student body of CalArts at the Disney Center in Los Angeles - one of the most downloaded speeches on the Magazine Publishers of America's web site (www.magazine.org).

In 1986, he received the Henry Johnson Fisher Award (the magazine industry's highest award). Paul McPherson, then executive vice president of McGraw-Hill Publications Co., who presented the award to Maurer, said: "Gil gives new meaning to the term 'Renaissance man.' On one hand, he is extremely creative, with a constant drive to redesign almost everything he observes. On the other hand, he is extremely pragmatic and admits to being excellent in arithmetic, which can only mean he's very good at producing net profit, controlling costs and making effective investments."

Maurer was named a vice president of Hearst Corporation in 1985. Prior to joining Hearst in 1973 as vice president of what was then Hearst Magazines' Motor Division, Maurer spent 19 years with Cowles Communications, Inc., where his positions included regional advertising director of Look, general manager of Cowles Book Division, publisher of Venture magazine and president of Family Circle.

A graduate of St. Lawrence University and Harvard Business School, Maurer is a trustee of the Whitney Museum of American Art, trustee of the Norton Museum of Art in Palm Beach, Florida, an overseer of the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in Los Angeles, a member of the Greater New York Advisory Board of the Salvation Army, and a member of the Board of Managers of The New York Botanical Gardens. He is past Chairman of the Board of Visitors of The Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and past member of the Board of Visitors to the art museums at Harvard University. His other awards include the Anti-­Defamation League's Distinguished Public Service Award and Doctor of Humane Letters from his alma mater, St. Lawrence University.

Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com) is one of the nation's largest diversified communications companies. Its major interests span more than 175 magazines around the world, including Cosmopolitan and O, The Oprah Magazine, 12 daily newspapers, including the Houston Chronicle and San Francisco Chronicle; 28 television stations through Hearst-Argyle Television (NYSE: HTV) which reach a combined 18% of U.S. viewers; ownership in leading cable networks, including Lifetime, A&E, The History Channel and ESPN; as well as business publishing, Internet businesses, television production, newspaper features distribution and real estate.

For more information about the Y's Men, contact Bill Meyer, Membership Chairman at 226-3704 or Bob Fatherley, President at 454-3653 or visit their website: www.ysmenwestportweston.org