John J. Horan (July 9, 1920 — January 22, 2011) was an American businessman. He was Chairman and CEO of Merck & Co. from 1976 to 1985.

Early life and education

Horan was born on July 9, 1920, on

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

. He attended

Manhattan College Manhattan University (previously Manhattan College) is a private, Catholic university in New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the De La Salle Christian Brothers (Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools) as an academy fo ...

on a scholarship, graduating in 1940. He then served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the North Africa and Italy theaters and worked in communications operation in

Plymouth, England Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

on the staff of Admiral John E. Wilkes. It was during his shift that General

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

sent word to commence the

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

operations and he was one of the first officers to deliver Eisenhower's orders to launch the amphibious landing. After the war, Horan earned a J.D. degree from

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...

in 1946.

Career

He joined Merck in 1952 as part of its legal department and became spokesperson of its

North Wales, Pennsylvania North Wales is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is a suburb of Philadelphia and is one of the three historic population centers that make up the North Penn Valley, which is centered on the borough of Lans ...

laboratory in 1957. He then rose through the ranks to become director of Research Administration, director of Corporate Planning, president and chief operating officer of

Merck Sharp and Dohme Merck & Co., Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey. The company does business as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada. It is one of the largest pharmaceutical co ...

. From 1976 to 1985, Horan served as CEO and Chairman of Merck. It was under his leadership that Merck became the world’s largest drug maker and tripled the company’s research and development spending – more than any other pharmaceutical firm at that time. Under Horan, Merck introduced the

hepatitis B vaccine Hepatitis B vaccine is a vaccine that prevents hepatitis B. The first dose is recommended within 24 hours of birth with either two or three more doses given after that. This includes those with poor immune function such as from HIV/AIDS and ...

Ivermectin Ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug. After its discovery in 1975, its first uses were in veterinary medicine to prevent and treat heartworm and acariasis. Approved for human use in 1987, it is used to treat infestations including head lice ...

, as well as new antibiotics and drugs to treat

high blood pressure Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms itself. It is, however, a major ri ...

and

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

. After retiring from Merck, he continues to serve as a director of the company and vice chairman until 1993. He also served as chairman of

Myriad Genetics Myriad Genetics, Inc. is an American genetic testing and precision medicine company based in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Myriad employs a number of proprietary technologies that permit doctors and patients to understand the genetic basi ...

, Atrix Laboratories, and a director of

Celgene Corporation Celgene Corporation, headquartered in Summit, New Jersey, was a pharmaceutical company that produced cancer and immunology drugs. Its primary products were Revlimid (lenalidomide), which is used in the treatment of multiple myeloma (63% of 2018 r ...

following his retirement from Merck. His other corporate directorships included:

General Motors Corporation General Motors Company (GM) is an American multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing four automobile brands: Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, ...

, J.P. Morgan & Co.,

NCR Corporation NCR Voyix Corporation, previously known as NCR Corporation and National Cash Register, is a global software, consulting and technology company providing several professional services and Electronics, electronic products. It manufactured Self-c ...

Burlington Industries Burlington Industries, formerly Burlington Mills, is a diversified American fabric maker based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Founded by J. Spencer Love in Burlington, North Carolina in 1923, the company is a subsidiary of Elevate Textiles and ha ...

. He was a chairman of the

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA, pronounced ), formerly known as the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, is an American trade group representing companies in the pharmaceutical industry. Founded in 1958, PhRMA ...

. He was also active in civic organizations and was a trustee of

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is an American philanthropic organization. It is the largest one focused solely on health. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the foundation focuses on access to health care, public health, health equity, l ...

and

United Negro College Fund UNCF, the United Negro College Fund, also known as the United Fund, is an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students and general scholarship funds for 37 private historically black colleges and universities. ...

Recognition

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

named him one of the "Great American Business Leaders of the 20th Century." Horan received an honorary degree from Manhattan College in 1978. He is the namesake of Horan Hall, a dormitory on the campus of Manhattan College. Merck Research Laboratories also dedicated an $80 million research building to Horan in

Rahway, New Jersey Rahway () is a city (New Jersey), city in southern Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A bedroom community of New York City, it is centrally located in the Rahway River, Rahway Valley region, in the New ...

Death

Horan died at age 90 on January 22, 2011, in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

References

1920 births 2011 deaths {{DEFAULTSORT:Horan, John J. Businesspeople from New York City Manhattan College alumni Columbia Law School alumni Merck & Co. people General Motors people JPMorgan Chase people NCR Corporation people American chief executives of Fortune 500 companies American chief executives 20th-century American businesspeople American people of Irish descent