Laurence L. “Larry” Arnold literally grew on the print-shop floor. With his parents owning several different newspapers, Larry was an accomplished printer and linotype operator by the time he entered the service in World War II.
Larry was born May 20, 1923, in Grand Rapids, Minn., the son of Lester and Florence Arnold. He grew up in Barron, Wis., where he graduated from high school in 1940. He later attended Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis, where he studied printing and graphic arts.
Larry joined the U.S. Air Force in 1943 and after the war was over in Europe, he joined the staff of the Army newspaper Stars and Stripes. In January 1946, he was honorably discharged and returned from overseas. The following month, he purchased his first newspaper, the Albany Herald. In May of that year, he married Pearl Martin at Rib Lake. They had a daughter, Gayle, and a son, Jeffrey.
In January 1950 they moved to New Lisbon, where Larry bought the New Lisbon Times-Argus. In 1952, he and Kenneth Bogert formed a partnership and purchased the Juneau County Chronicle and Mauston Star. The newspaper were later consolidated and became the Juneau County Star Times. In 1985, he sold the business and retired after 39 years in the publishing business.
His wife Pearl passed away in 1975 and the following year he married Arlis Mack. The couple shared 34 happy years together. After Arlis’ death, he became engaged to longtime friend Vohnie Rabuck.
Larry died Sept. 28, 2011, at age 88.
