The New York Times-20080126-Alton G- Marshall- 86- Nelson Rockefeller-s Top Aide- -Obituary -Obit--
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Alton G. Marshall, 86, Nelson Rockefeller's Top Aide; [Obituary (Obit)]
Alton G. Marshall, who as executive secretary to Gov. Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York in the late 1960s was considered a behind-the-scenes manager of the governor's programs, died Thursday at his home in Manhattan. He was 86.
The cause was congestive heart failure, said his wife, Sarah.
Mr. Marshall served as Governor Rockefeller's chief aide from 1965 to 1971, and later became president of Rockefeller Center and then chairman of Lincoln Savings Bank.
In 1968, when Mr. Rockefeller was turning his attention to a bid for the Republican nomination for president, an article in The New York Times said, The de facto governor of New York will be Alton Marshall, a 46-year-old, silver-haired ex-Marine who has been dealing with bureaucrats, state and local, for 21 years.
Among the major initiatives in which Mr. Marshall was directly involved were the formation of the state university system, the development of Battery Park City, expansion of the state park system and improvements in public infrastructure.
Rockefeller set the policy and made the decisions; Marshall made it all happen, James Cannon, an assistant to Mr. Rockefeller, said in a statement on Friday.
Starting with an internship in 1947, Mr. Marshall held a series of state government positions, including secretary of utility regulations for the Public Service Commission and deputy director of the Division of the Budget. He became Mr. Rockefeller's executive officer in 1965 and soon after was appointed secretary to the governor.
Mr. Marshall also served as a commissioner on the New York State Thruway Authority and, in 1973, as chairman of a special state committee that investigated deplorable conditions at the Willowbrook State School for the Mentally Retarded on Staten Island. On the committee's recommendation, the school was reorganized into independently administered units in each of New York City's five boroughs.
In 1971, the Rockefeller family chose Mr. Marshall to be president and chief executive of Rockefeller Center Inc., which owns and manages the office building, entertainment and shopping complex. In his seven years as president, the corporation expanded its interests to manufacturing, oil and gas development and national real estate, with holdings in 52 cities.
From 1984 to 1991, Mr. Marshall was chairman and chief executive of the Brooklyn-based Lincoln Savings Bank. Throughout the 1990s, he was president of Alton G. Marshall Associates, a real estate investment corporation.
Alton Garwood Marshall was born in Flint, Mich., on Sept. 19, 1921, the son of William and Lela Brabon Marshall. After graduating from Hillsdale College in 1942, Mr. Marshall enlisted in the Marines; he saw combat on Guam and Iwo Jima. In 1947, he received a master's degree in public administration from Syracuse University.
Mr. Marshall's first marriage, to Mary Lee Golden, ended in divorce. Besides his wife, the former Sarah DeLand, Mr. Marshall is survived by five children: William, of Philadelphia; Stephen and John, both of Warwick, N.Y.; MaryAnn Trebian of Scottsdale, Ariz.; and Sarah Marshall of Manhattan. He is also survived by six grandchildren.
[Illustration]PHOTO: Alton G. Marshall at Rockefeller Center in 1979. (PHOTOGRAPH BY MARILYNN K. YEE/THE NEW YORK TIMES)