Supreme Court Spokeswoman Dies
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s new term began on a sad note. Toni House, who represented the court as its first spokeswoman, died Tuesday after a brief battle with lung cancer. She was 55.
Working for the publicity-shy justices, House’s job did not call for promoting herself, the court or its decisions. The opinions “speak for themselves,” she often said.
She did, however, educate the public and reporters about the workings of the court and, sometimes, she had to explain the workings of the press to the justices.
House succeeded in winning over both sides. “Her cheerful competence will be very much missed,” said Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist.
House began her career as a reporter and editor for the Washington Star. In the 1970s, she was among several feminists who forced the all-male Gridiron Club to open its doors to women. She was named to head the court’s public information office in 1982.
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