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Michigan-raised furniture designer Charles Pollock dies in NY fire

Ruthie Hansen
/
Flickr

NEW YORK (AP) - The Michigan-raised designer of the famous Pollock Executive Chair that became ubiquitous in offices in the mid-20th century has died in a fire at his New York City home. Charles Pollock was 83.

Police say Pollock was declared dead in his Queens home Tuesday morning.

Pollock was raised in the Detroit area and graduated from Detroit Cass Technical High School. He came to New York to attend the Pratt Institute.

He introduced his chair in 1963. Set on rolling wheels, the chair was visually distinctive with tufted upholstery and an aluminum band around its edges. In following decades, Pollock moved away from furniture design.

He returned to it recently. After being sought out by Jerry Helling of Bernhardt Design, Pollock created a lounge chair that debuted last year.

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting.
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