Oliver Preston Robinson (1903–1990) was a prominent advertising professor at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

and later editor of the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

''. Robinson was born in

Farmington, Utah Farmington is a city in, and county seat of, Davis County, Utah, United States. The population was 24,531 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The Lagoon Amusement Park and Station Park (Farmington, Utah), Station Park transit-oriented ...

, to James Henry Robinson and his wife Romania Elizabeth Chaffin. In 1922, he began college as a student at the

. Robinson served as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

for

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church) in France from 1924 to 1927. In 1928, he graduated from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

with a bachelor's degree. He married Christine Hinckley, a daughter of Bryant S. Hinckley, in the

Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a Temple (LDS Church), temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the Comparison of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Sa ...

in 1929. Robinson received a master's degree from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

(NYU). He also took special courses at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

and the

University of Grenoble The (, ''Grenoble Alps University'', abbr. UGA) is a Grands établissements, ''grand établissement'' in Grenoble, France. Founded in 1339, it is the third largest university in France with about 60,000 students and over 3,000 researchers. Es ...

. He later received a Ph.D. in marketing and retail from NYU. He taught at NYU until 1947 when he went to the University of Utah, where he was head of the retailing department in the business school. Robinson had worked for

Hofstra University Hofstra University is a Private university, private research university in Hempstead, New York, United States. It originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University and became an independent college in 1939. Comprising ten schools, includ ...

while completing his Ph.D. At other times he worked as a training specialist for J. C. Penney and as a professor at the University of Newark (now Rutgers–Newark). While living in New York, he also served as a

branch president A branch president is a leader of a "branch" congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The calling of branch president is very similar to the calling of bishop, except that instead of presiding over a ward, th ...

in the LDS Church. While a professor at the University of Utah, one of Robinson's students was

Thomas S. Monson Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). As president, he was considered by adherents of the rel ...

. In 1950, Robinson became assistant manager of the ''

''. In 1952, he was made general manager of

Deseret News Publishing Company The Deseret News Publishing Company is a publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It is a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), a holding company owned by the Corporation of the President of The Churc ...

and editor of the ''Deseret News''. Robinson was president of the Utah Symphony. He was also a moderator of the Nixon/Brown California gubernatorial debates in 1962. From 1964 to 1967, Robinson was

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the British Mission of the LDS Church, headquartered in London. He also served on the General Board of the Deseret Sunday School Union. Robinson wrote and edited many books, some with his wife Christine. Among the works he edited was the journal of his great-grandfather, Joseph Lee Robinson. Other works he wrote include ''Store Salesmanship'', ''Dead Sea Scrolls and Original Christianity'', ''Christ's Eternal Gospel: Do the Dead Sea Scrolls, Pseudepigrapha, and Other Ancient Records Challenge or Support the Bible'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1976) . One of his books, ''Successful Retail Sales'', was illustrated by J. Rulon Hales, the father of Robert D. Hales. Robinson and his wife Christine were the parents of three children.

Sources

''Deseret News'' article on Robinson's funeral

bio connected with BYU collection of Robinson's papers
* Heidi S. Swinton. ''To The Rescue: The Biography of Thomas S. Monson''. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 2010. p. 107.
Good Reads listing for RobinsonNov. 11, 1990 ''Deseret News'' article on Robinson's deathOpen library entry for Robinson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, O. Preston People from Farmington, Utah American Mormon missionaries in France University of Utah alumni Brigham Young University alumni New York University Stern School of Business alumni Grenoble Alpes University alumni Hofstra University people New York University faculty University of Utah faculty Rutgers University faculty Deseret News people Mission presidents (LDS Church) Sunday School (LDS Church) people 1903 births 1990 deaths American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 20th-century American writers 20th-century Mormon missionaries American expatriates in Germany