Obit: Former ABC TV Chief Mark Mandala

Mark A. Mandala, the former president of ABC TV Network, died Saturday, while playing golf near his home in Vermont. He was 72.

Mandala joined ABC in 1962, working both in sales and management positions in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and New York. In 1983, he was promoted to president of the ABC Owned Television Stations division, and in 1986 he was promoted to president of the network.He retired in 1994.

A reception will be hosted on Tuesday,at the Dorset Field club in Dorset, Vermont.  An additional memorial will be planned in the future on the West Coast.

Born in Downey, California, Mandala is survived by his wife of 48 years, Joan Neely Mandala; three sons, including a son Steve, who is a Steve, is a top cable sales executive with NBC Universal; a sister; and six grandchildren.

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