Mecham, Evan

Mecham, Evan

(1924– ) businessman, governor; born in Duschesne, Utah. A World War II army veteran, he made millions as president of Mecham Pontiac in Glendale, Ariz. (1950–88). After serving in the state senate (Rep., 1960–62), he became American Newspaper Group publisher (1963–74). A controversial governor of Arizona (1987–88)—most notorious for refusing to recognize Martin Luther King's birthday as a state holiday—he was impeached for accepting a $350,000 loan from a real estate developer, Barry Wolfson.