Gordon Dean
Encyclopedia
Gordon Evans Dean was a Seattle-born American lawyer and prosecutor who served as chairman of the US
Atomic Energy Commission
(AEC) from 1950 to 1953.
Dean received his J.D. from the University of Southern California
in 1930 and an LL.M. from Duke University Law School in 1932. In 1934, Dean joined the U.S. Department of Justice during the New Deal
administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Dean served under Attorneys General Homer S. Cummings and Frank Murphy
as a Criminal Division attorney and press spokesperson. He had taught at Duke Law before being hired as assistant to Brien McMahon
in the Criminal Division. Dean helped draft expansions of the federal criminal law and defended them in cases argued before the United States Supreme Court. In 1940, Attorney General Robert H. Jackson
made Dean the press spokesperson for the Department of Justice. After six years at Justice, Dean left to join McMahon's law firm as partner.
After World War II military service, Dean served as press spokesperson for now Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson who was the chief prosecutor in the Nuremberg Trials
. Prior to his work with the AEC, Dean was professor of criminal law at the University of Southern California (1946–1949).
Dean was appointed by President Harry S. Truman
as one of the original Commissioners of the AEC in May 1949, by which time McMahon had become Senator (in 1944), author of the Atomic Energy Act of 1946
, and chair of the Joint Atomic Energy Committee of Congress. Dean was then appointed as the second Chairman of the AEC beginning in May 1950, following David Lilienthal
, again with McMahon's backing. As early as 1950, Dean advocated for the appointment of a Presidential Science Advisor and science advisory task force. Dean served at the time of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
's creation in 1952. During Dean's tenure as Chairman, McCarthyism
reached its peak. Robert Oppenheimer
came under attack by Lewis Strauss, Edward Teller
and others for his alleged foot-dragging at Los Alamos. Dean defended Oppenheimer. As Cold War
tensions heightened and the Korean War
raged on, Dean led a massive industrialization of the United States nuclear facilities. The hydrogen bomb, a nuclear weapon of massive and unprecedented force, was perfected during his tenure as Chairman with the detonation of the Ivy Mike
hydrogen bomb, based on Edward Teller
's design in October 1952. Dean served for a brief period under President Eisenhower
as well, staying until the completion of his term on June 30, 1953.
On leaving government service, Dean joined investment bankers Lehman Brothers
. He became an executive of General Dynamics
in 1955.
From 1954, Dean chaired a Council on Foreign Relations
study group on nuclear weapons and U.S. foreign policy. Members of the group included Paul Nitze
, Robert Bowie, David Rockefeller
, and Lieutenant General James M. Gavin
. Henry Kissinger
joined as study group director in 1955. Dean would also join the International Security Objectives and Strategy panel of the Rockefeller Brothers
' Special Studies Project
in 1956.
Dean was killed in a commercial aviation accident on August 15, 1958, when the Northeast Airlines
Convair CV-240 he was travelling in crashed on its approach to Nantucket Airport
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Atomic Energy Commission
United States Atomic Energy Commission
The United States Atomic Energy Commission was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by Congress to foster and control the peace time development of atomic science and technology. President Harry S...
(AEC) from 1950 to 1953.
Dean received his J.D. from the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in 1930 and an LL.M. from Duke University Law School in 1932. In 1934, Dean joined the U.S. Department of Justice during the New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Dean served under Attorneys General Homer S. Cummings and Frank Murphy
Frank Murphy
William Francis Murphy was a politician and jurist from Michigan. He served as First Assistant U.S. District Attorney, Eastern Michigan District , Recorder's Court Judge, Detroit . Mayor of Detroit , the last Governor-General of the Philippines , U.S...
as a Criminal Division attorney and press spokesperson. He had taught at Duke Law before being hired as assistant to Brien McMahon
Brien McMahon
Brien McMahon, born James O'Brien McMahon was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States Senate from 1945 to 1952...
in the Criminal Division. Dean helped draft expansions of the federal criminal law and defended them in cases argued before the United States Supreme Court. In 1940, Attorney General Robert H. Jackson
Robert H. Jackson
Robert Houghwout Jackson was United States Attorney General and an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court . He was also the chief United States prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials...
made Dean the press spokesperson for the Department of Justice. After six years at Justice, Dean left to join McMahon's law firm as partner.
After World War II military service, Dean served as press spokesperson for now Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson who was the chief prosecutor in the Nuremberg Trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
. Prior to his work with the AEC, Dean was professor of criminal law at the University of Southern California (1946–1949).
Dean was appointed by President Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
as one of the original Commissioners of the AEC in May 1949, by which time McMahon had become Senator (in 1944), author of the Atomic Energy Act of 1946
Atomic Energy Act of 1946
The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 determined how the United States federal government would control and manage the nuclear technology it had jointly developed with its wartime allies...
, and chair of the Joint Atomic Energy Committee of Congress. Dean was then appointed as the second Chairman of the AEC beginning in May 1950, following David Lilienthal
David Lilienthal
David Eli Lilienthal was an American public official who served in many different governmental roles over the course of his career...
, again with McMahon's backing. As early as 1950, Dean advocated for the appointment of a Presidential Science Advisor and science advisory task force. Dean served at the time of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , just outside Livermore, California, is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center founded by the University of California in 1952...
's creation in 1952. During Dean's tenure as Chairman, McCarthyism
McCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
reached its peak. Robert Oppenheimer
Robert Oppenheimer
Julius Robert Oppenheimer was an American theoretical physicist and professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley. Along with Enrico Fermi, he is often called the "father of the atomic bomb" for his role in the Manhattan Project, the World War II project that developed the first...
came under attack by Lewis Strauss, Edward Teller
Edward Teller
Edward Teller was a Hungarian-American theoretical physicist, known colloquially as "the father of the hydrogen bomb," even though he did not care for the title. Teller made numerous contributions to nuclear and molecular physics, spectroscopy , and surface physics...
and others for his alleged foot-dragging at Los Alamos. Dean defended Oppenheimer. As Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
tensions heightened and the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
raged on, Dean led a massive industrialization of the United States nuclear facilities. The hydrogen bomb, a nuclear weapon of massive and unprecedented force, was perfected during his tenure as Chairman with the detonation of the Ivy Mike
Ivy Mike
Ivy Mike was the codename given to the first United States test of a thermonuclear weapon, in which a major part of the explosive yield came from nuclear fusion. It was detonated on November 1, 1952 by the United States at on Enewetak, an atoll in the Pacific Ocean, as part of Operation Ivy...
hydrogen bomb, based on Edward Teller
Edward Teller
Edward Teller was a Hungarian-American theoretical physicist, known colloquially as "the father of the hydrogen bomb," even though he did not care for the title. Teller made numerous contributions to nuclear and molecular physics, spectroscopy , and surface physics...
's design in October 1952. Dean served for a brief period under President Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
as well, staying until the completion of his term on June 30, 1953.
On leaving government service, Dean joined investment bankers Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
. He became an executive of General Dynamics
General Dynamics
General Dynamics Corporation is a U.S. defense conglomerate formed by mergers and divestitures, and as of 2008 it is the fifth largest defense contractor in the world. Its headquarters are in West Falls Church , unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Falls Church area.The company has...
in 1955.
From 1954, Dean chaired a Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
study group on nuclear weapons and U.S. foreign policy. Members of the group included Paul Nitze
Paul Nitze
Paul Henry Nitze was a high-ranking United States government official who helped shape Cold War defense policy over the course of numerous presidential administrations.-Early life, education, and family:...
, Robert Bowie, David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller, Sr. is the current patriarch of the Rockefeller family. He is the youngest and only surviving child of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, and the only surviving grandchild of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil. His five siblings were...
, and Lieutenant General James M. Gavin
James M. Gavin
James Maurice "Jumpin' Jim" Gavin was a prominent Lieutenant General in the United States Army during World War II...
. Henry Kissinger
Henry Kissinger
Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...
joined as study group director in 1955. Dean would also join the International Security Objectives and Strategy panel of the Rockefeller Brothers
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund , , is an international philanthropic organisation created and run by members of the Rockefeller family. It was set up in New York City in 1940 as the primary philanthropic vehicle of the five famous Rockefeller brothers: John D...
' Special Studies Project
Special Studies Project
The Special Studies Project was a study funded by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and conceived by its then president, Nelson Rockefeller, to 'define the major problems and opportunities facing the U.S. and clarify national purposes and objectives, and to develop principles which could serve as the...
in 1956.
Dean was killed in a commercial aviation accident on August 15, 1958, when the Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines was an American airline based in Boston, Massachusetts. They began as Boston-Maine Airways, which was founded as a Pan Am contract carrier on July 20, 1931, by the Boston and Maine Railroad and Maine Central Railroad offering service from Boston to Bangor via Portland...
Convair CV-240 he was travelling in crashed on its approach to Nantucket Airport
Nantucket Memorial Airport
Nantucket Memorial Airport is a public airport on the south side of the island of Nantucket in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The airport is owned by the Town of Nantucket and is located three miles southeast of the town...
.