Longtime newspaper ad man retiring

After 46 years in the newspaper business, the Southeast Missourian's Irvin Landewee is retiring as the paper's national advertising accounts manager. His impending departure has set in motion a slight reshuffling of personnel at the Cape Girardeau newspaper office.

Donna Denson said Landewee's announcement was the impetus for a re-evaluation of the Missourian's advertising management positions. One of those positions was her own. Denson has now been officially named advertising director, a capacity at which she's served on an interim basis for over two years.

As director, Denson oversees the advertising departments of the Southeast Missourian, The Banner Press and the Scott County Signal. She's been with the Southeast Missourian for more than 13 years, previously serving as manager of targeted publications and classifieds.

Succeeding Landewee as national accounts manager will be Gera LeGrand. LeGrand has been training in the position for over a month and will take over the position effective Dec. 13. Her duties include managing all major corporate accounts, ad inserts and being assistant sales manager -- Denson's second-in-command. LeGrand is a new employee of the Southeast Missourian, but she brings to the position 17 years of experience in broadcast advertising with Zimmer Radio Group.

"Gera's more than capable, but she has some big shoes to fill," Denson said. "Irv has gained a wealth of information and knowledge that's hard to replace. We'll miss him and wish him a happy, well-deserved retirement."

Landewee's last day in the office will be Dec. 10. At that point he will conclude a newspaper career that started in 1958, when he was a fly boy, taking pages off the press of the Southeast Missourian. The next year he moved to advertising, eventually rising to the level of assistant ad manager before moving to the Bulletin Journal in 1980 to be that paper's advertising manager.

When Bulletin Journal owner Gary Rust bought the Southeast Missourian in 1986, Landewee moved back to 301 Broadway to serve as ad manager and later moving to his current position.

In retirement, Landewee said he's going to join his wife, Peggy, in Liberty, Mo., where his son and grandchildren live. He said he'll help his son run a landscaping business, and try to find time to go fishing with the grandchildren.

"I've enjoyed working with the clients throughout the years," Landewee said. "I've enjoyed working with the people."

trehagen@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137