Marina von Neumann Whitman

Marina von Neumann Whitman (March 6, 1935 – May 20, 2025) was an American economist, writer and automobile executive. She was a professor of business administration and public policy at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business as well as The Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.

Early life and career

From 1979 until 1992, she was an officer of the General Motors Corporation, first as vice president and chief economist, and later as vice president and group executive for public affairs, which included the Economics, Environmental Activities, Industry-Government Relations and Public Relations staffs. She also served as a director of several leading multinational corporations and research and policy institutions, including the Institute for Advanced Study and Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Prior to her appointment at GM, Whitman was a member of the faculty in the Department of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh, beginning as an instructor in 1962 and becoming Distinguished Public Service Professor of Economics in 1973. She served as a member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers in 1972–73, while on leave from the university. She was a director at the Council on Foreign Relations between 1977 and 1987. She was also a onetime member of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group.

Whitman received a B.A. in government from Radcliffe College (now Harvard University), graduating at the top of her class, and her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics from Columbia University. The author of many books, monographs and articles, she was the recipient of numerous fellowships, honors and awards, and holds honorary degrees from over twenty colleges and universities.

Personal life and death

Whitman was born in New York City on March 6, 1935. Her father was the polymath John von Neumann, one of the foremost mathematicians of the 20th century. She was married to Robert Freeman Whitman, professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh, from June 23, 1956, until his death in 2024. Whitman had two children and two grandchildren. Her stepbrother is George H. Kuper, former president and chief executive officer of the Council of Great Lake Industries and an independent consultant in the areas of public policy, environmental and energy issues. Her daughter, Dr. Laura Mariette Whitman (1964–2023), was a noted specialist in internal medicine and out-patient medical education at Yale University.

Whitman died from pneumonia at a hospital in Concord, Massachusetts, on May 20, 2025, at the age of 90.

Published books

• The Martian's Daughter. A Memoir, The University of Michigan Press, 2012.
• New World, New Rules: The Changing Role of the American Corporation, Harvard Business School Press, 1999
• Reflections of Interdependence: Issues for Economic Theory and U.S. Policy, University of Pittsburgh Press, 1979.
• Government Risk-Sharing in Foreign Investment, Princeton University Press, 1965

External links

• Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, Marina Whitman
• Online Archives of California: Marina von Neumann Whitman Papers, White House Central Files, 1971–1973
• Life with Father
• Marina v.N. Whitman at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy
• Template:C-SPAN