Thomas R. Beattie dies at 81

Abstract

Thomas R. Beattie, founding chair of the American Chemical Society Committee on Senior Chemists, has died at age 81. He is remembered for his legacy of service to ACS and as a dedicated friend, leader, and mentor to members of the ACS San Diego Section. Beattie earned a BS in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania, later completing a PhD at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in physical organic chemistry. After a stint as a postdoctoral fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he began a 27-year career at Merck Research Laboratories in Rahway, New Jersey, working in early-stage drug discovery. In 1993, Beattie retired early from Merck and moved to San Diego, where he worked as a biopharmaceutical consultant. Beattie was a councilor for the ACS San Diego Section for more than 20 years. He served as the section’s chair in 1999; that year, the section took home a ChemLuminary