Edward E. Carlson*
Class of 1975
- Chairman UAL, Inc.
It is important to venture and accomplish, rather than be passive and defeated.
Edward Carlson was born in 1911 in Tacoma, Washington. Following his parents' divorce, Carlson worked at odd jobs to help his mother in Seattle.
In 1928, he enrolled at the University of Washington and began his first hotel job as a pageboy in Seattle's Benjamin Franklin Hotel. He left college before graduating and continued to advance in the hospitality industry. By 1936, he was manager of a small hotel and later became manager of Seattle's exclusive Rainier Club.
Carlson joined the U.S. Navy in 1942 and advanced to the rank of lieutenant commander in the Supply Corps. In 1946, he became assistant to the president of Western Hotels, and by 1969, he was chairman of the board.
In 1970, Carlson became a director of Western International Hotels and UAL, Inc., the parent company of United Airlines. In 1975, he became chairman of the board and CEO of both UAL and United. He is also credited for bringing the 1962 World's Fair, the Century 21 Exposition, to Seattle.