John J Horan

John Joseph Horan was born July 9, 1920, on Staten Island. He had earlier served as the company's president and chief operating officer. Mr. Horan received an A.B. degree from Manhattan College in 1940 and a J.D. degree from Columbia University Law School in 1946. Mr. Horan joined Merck in 1952 as part of its legal department. In 1957 he became spokesman for the Merck, Sharpe & Dohme research laboratory in North Wales, Pa. Mr. Horan was chief executive from 1976 to 1985, a period when Merck introduced a hepatitis B vaccine, as well as new antibiotics and drugs to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. Under his watch, Merck also developed ivermectin, a drug that prevents and treats river blindness. Following his retirement from management at Merck, Mr. Horan played an active role in the development of the biotech industry, serving as chairman of the board of Myriad Laboratories, chairman of Atrix Laboratories and director of Celgene Laboratories. Mr. Horan's corporate directorships included General Motors Corporation, NCR Corporation, JP Morgan and Co. Inc., and Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York, and the Burlington Industries, Inc. Mr. Horan is survived by his wife of 66 years, Julia Fitzgerald; a daughter, Mary Alice Ryan of Spring Lake, N.J.; three sons, Thomas, of Hoboken, John Jr., of Sea Girt, and David, of Armonk, N.Y.; two sisters, Mary Smith of Lakewood, N.J., and Florence Keating of Wall, N.J.; a brother, Eugene, of Monroe, N.J.; and nine grandchildren.