09/23/2026
Donald W. Reynolds was born on this day in 1906, in Fort Worth, Texas.
His family moved to Oklahoma City shortly after his birth. He became a businessman at the age of 12, buying copies of The Oklahoma Times for a half penny, then selling them for a penny.
After graduating high school, he attended the University of Missouri's School of Journalism. Graduating in 1927, he was fired from his first two newspaper jobs, then hired by the Austin American-Statesman. While there, he became part owner in a small photo-engraving plant.
In 1934, he worked for the United Press in Europe, accompanying the Italian Army as they fought in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. When he returned to the U.S. in 1936, he bought an interest in the Quincy Evening News in Massachusetts. He profited a year later when the paper was paper was acquired by the Quincy Patriot Ledger.
He invested in two other papers in 1938, but one went bankrupt and the other ceased operations due to competition.
In 1940, he purchased the Fort Smith Times, Southwest American, and the Okmulgee Daily Times - and the Donrey Media Group was born.
He fought in the Second World War, winning a Purple Heart after his reconnaissance plane was hit by a German shell, wounding him in the face, neck, and shoulders. He was discharged in February 1945.
Less than ten years later, Donald Reynolds founded the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. Initially, the Foundation awarded $100,000 in scholarships each year to journalism students at 10 universities. The Foundation was created to support needs and to make a "transformational impact" (Little Rock Soirée magazine, 10/1/09) in four areas:
1) Meet the greatest needs in Arkansas, Nevada, and Oklahoma through improved facilities for their outstanding nonprofits.
2) Accelerate the fight against atherosclerosis and atherosclerotic heart disease through cutting-edge, translational research.
3) Improve the quality of life of America's growing elderly population through better training of physicians in geriatrics.
4) Enhance the quality and integrity of journalism, focusing particularly on better training of journalists who serve smaller communities and on business journalism.
Before the Foundation closed in 2005, it had made a significant impact across the three states above, but particularly Arkansas. It is through this generosity that the UAMS Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging was created.
Donald W. Reynolds retired in 1990, and passed away on April 2, 1993, on a ship in the Mediterranean. At the time of his death, he owned 53 daily newspapers, 11 outdoor advertising companies, five cable television companies, and one television station. He was survived by his wife, three children, and six grandchildren.
