Crouch, Bill

Bill Crouch; Editorial Photographer dies December 27, 1997. Bill Crouch, who won a Pulitzer Prize for photography at The Oakland Tribune for his 1950 picture of a near collision between two aircraft, has died at 82. Bill served in the US Marine Corp 1941-1945. He joined the staff at the The Oakland Tribune in 1945 until his retirement in 1984. Crouch, who retired in 1984, died Saturday of cancer at his home in the Sierra Nevada foothills about 110 miles east of San Francisco. Crouch joined the newspaper in 1941, left shortly thereafter to serve with the Marines in World War II, then returned in 1945. While off duty one day in 1950, Crouch was attending an Air Show. He was trying to get an artistic shot of a stunt plane when things went horribly wrong. A  B-29 Super fortress that was to be part of the show came in to the area too early and missed the wing of a stunt plane flown by Chet Derby by five feet. With little time to spare, Crouch took the famous shot of Derby’s plane as it flew upside down and barely missed the wing of the B-29. Crouch was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Photography for his efforts. (Go to historical view page of our website to see photo.)