Government organization expert Harold Seidman dead at 91

Harold Seidman, an expert on government organization and management who spent a quarter-century at the U.S. Bureau of the Budget before a second career in academia, died Tuesday, Aug. 20, at the Methodist Home of Washington in Chevy Chase, Md. He was 91 and had prostate cancer.

Seidman was considered one of the world's experts on government corporations, and on the shift from government control of federal programs to control by state and local governments and private institutions such as nonprofits. He analyzed that trend in his book, Politics, Position and Power: The Dynamics of Federal Organization. The fifth edition of the book was published in 1997 and is widely used in graduate schools. Seidman also consulted for government agencies throughout the United States and for countries in Central and South America, Asia and Europe.

He was an analyst, branch chief and finally assistant director for management and organization of the Budget Bureau, the predecessor of today's Office of Management and Budget. Serving in the bureau from 1943 to 1968, Seidman played a significant role in the implementation of statehood for Alaska and Hawaii and of commonwealth status for Puerto Rico. He provided support for the task force that created the U.S. Department of Transportation.

After leaving government, he was professor of political science at the University of Connecticut from 1971 to 1984 and filled academic positions at other universities in the United States and United Kingdom. From 1987 to his death, he was senior fellow at the Washington Center for the Study of American Government at Johns Hopkins, where he continued his research and writing, lectured and helped to supervise master's degree theses.

"Harold was one of the wise men of Washington. He was familiar with all the laws, rules and regulations that make the city work," said Benjamin Ginsberg, director of the center and Bernstein Professor of Political Science at Hopkins. Ginsberg said that long after Seidman left government, incoming administrations of both parties would often consult with him on the procedures they needed to follow under the law to accomplish their policy objectives.

Seidman is survived by a nephew, David Seidman, and two nieces, Judith Devine and Barbara Geiger. A memorial service will be announced at a later date. An observance was held at the university's Washington Center on Aug. 29.

Norman Anderson, longtime SOM faculty member, dies at 69

Norman D. Anderson, an associate professor of medicine and surgery at the School of Medicine and one of the first physicians to urge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to recall silicone gel breast implants, died Aug. 15 of complications from gastric cancer. He was 69.

Anderson, who lived in Towson, Md., was the medical school's assistant dean for admission from 1979 to 1991, during which time he lectured at universities around the country on the admissions process. Among other leadership roles, he also served as physician adviser for quality assurance from 1976 to 1982. He was scheduled to retire Sept. 1.

From 1987 to 1991, Anderson served as a member and chairman of several review panels for the FDA that looked at breast implants. His work led to a moratorium on silicone breast implants, eliminating their use.

Born Sept. 25, 1932, in Chinook, Mont., Anderson graduated from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis in 1958. He did his residency in medicine at Hopkins, then served from 1961 to 1963 in the U.S. Army Medical Corps. He completed fellowships in immunology at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia and in medical genetics at the University of Pennsylvania. Anderson joined the medical faculty at Hopkins in 1967.

"Those who worked with Dr. Anderson here recall him as a dedicated colleague devoted to his work, his patients and this institution," said Edward Miller, dean of the School of Medicine and CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine. "His service to Hopkins was exemplary."

A memorial service was held Aug. 24 at Towson Presbyterian Church. Donations may be sent to the Norman D. Anderson Fund, c/o the Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, 100 N. Charles St., Suite 400, Baltimore, MD 21201.

Anderson is survived by his wife, Myrna; four sons, Stephen, of St. Petersburg, Fla.; Bruce, of Allentown, Pa.; Eric, of Arlington, Va.; and Matthew, of Fairfax, Va.; his mother, Myrtle Wilson, of Chinook, Mont.; a sister, Grace King, of Chinook; and nine grandchildren.