Jules Plangere Jr., Former Asbury Park Press Publisher, Monmouth University Backer, Dies At 95

SPRING LAKE, NJ — Jules L. Plangere Jr., the former publisher of the Asbury Park Press who also was a longtime donor to Monmouth University, has died, according to a report. He was 95 years old.

The Asbury Park Press reported Plangere's death, citing Plangere's business associates. He died Sunday due to complications of a stroke, according to the report.

“It is impossible to understate the transformational and lasting influence Jules L. Plangere Jr. has had on Monmouth University during his many years of service as a trustee, board chair, and visionary leader," Monmouth University President Paul R. Brown said in a statement on the university's website. “His legacy at Monmouth extends to almost every area of our university, including scholarship opportunities for students, academic programming, building influential centers of distinction, and support for athletic teams and facilities, which have all been strengthened by his efforts."

“In so many ways our trajectory of success over the past decades is tribute to his steadfast belief in all that Monmouth University could achieve," Brown said. "Likewise, his philanthropic investments in civic improvement across our entire region enhanced the quality of life for many who were not fortunate enough to know him personally."

“Jules was an extraordinary person of lasting influence whose personal and professional legacy we are proud to have shared,” Brown said.

Plangere was publisher and one of the owners of the Asbury Park Press from 1974 until 1997, when the Plangere family and the Lass family — the co-owners — sold New Jersey Press Inc., the Press' parent company, to Gannett Co., Inc., ending 118-years of continuous local ownership of the newspaper, which was founded as the Shore Press in 1879.

After the Gannett sale, Plangere shifted his media involvement to Press Communications LLC, a multimedia company that owns several Central New Jersey radio stations, including Thunder 106; Plangere was a senior partner in the company, the Press report said.

He was also a principal investor in PMCM TV, based in Freehold Township, the licensee and operator of broadcast television station WJLP, Channel 3, in New York City, KJWP, Channel 2, in Philadelphia. The stations' call letters pay tribute to Plangere and his wife, Jane, who survives him, along with a son, Jules Plangere III, the report said.

Plangere, who served as chairman of the Board of Trustees at Monmouth University in West Long Branch from 1983 to 1989, has given millions of dollars to the university, helping to fund everything from scholarships to the Monmouth Polling Institute, now one of the country's top national political polling centers; his donations also have helped fund academic facilities and athletic facilities, the Press report said.

He is survived by his wife, Jane, and son, Jules Plangere III.

Read more here.

Monmouth University's statement included a list of some of the key contributions and highlights of Plangere's association with the university, including:

• As board chair (1983-89), Plangere championed the adoption of the University’s first strategic plan, which focused on achieving regional distinction by enhancing academic quality and establishing closer community partnerships.
• Plangere’s transformational legacy at Monmouth University is clear in his support for endowed student scholarships, the endowed Jules L. Plangere, Jr. Chair in American Social History, his support for young journalists at the student-run newspaper, The Outlook, lighting for the soccer facilities at Hesse Field on the Great Lawn, and the first leadership gift to the Monmouth Stadium currently under construction.
• Plangere’s foundational investment in the Monmouth University Polling Institute to foster greater public understanding of social and political issues, and his marquee gift to build the OceanFirst Bank Center, which bears his initials on center court, have been essential building blocks in the increased national prominence of Monmouth University.
• The award-winning Jules L. Plangere, Jr. Center for Communication and Instructional Technology was named in his honor in 2002.
• Plangere’s many awards and recognition include: the President’s Vision Award, renamed the Jules L. Plangere, Jr. Medal in his honor in 2015; the Monmouth Award for Communication Excellence; an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

Jules L. Plangere Jr., via Rutgers Magazine, a publication of Rutgers University; Candles image via Shutterstock