James Day Hodgson

James Day Hodgson (December 3, 1915 – November 28, 2012) was an American politician. He served as the Secretary of Labor and the Ambassador to Japan.^[1]

James Day Hodgson
Portrait c. 1970s
United States Ambassador to Japan
In office July 19, 1974 – February 2, 1977
President	Gerald Ford
Preceded by	Robert S. Ingersoll
Succeeded by	Mike Mansfield
12th United States Secretary of Labor
In office July 2, 1970 – February 1, 1973
President	Richard Nixon
Preceded by	George Shultz
Succeeded by	Peter J. Brennan
Personal details
Born	(1915-12-03)December 3, 1915 Dawson, Minnesota, U.S.
Died	November 28, 2012(2012-11-28) (aged 96) Malibu, California, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Maria Denend ​ (m. 1943⁠–⁠2012)​
Children	2
Education	University of Minnesota (BA) University of California, Los Angeles

Life and career

Hodgson in a group photo of Nixon's cabinet on June 16, 1972, third from the right in the back row.

Hodgson was born in Dawson, Minnesota, the son of Fred Arthur Hodgson, a lumberyard owner, and his wife, Casaraha M. (née Day). He graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1938 where he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity,^[2] and began graduate studies at the University of California at Los Angeles.^[3] He married the former Maria Denend on August 24, 1943. They had two children, Nancy Ruth Hodgson, and Frederick Jesse Hodgson.

During World War II, Hodgson served as an officer in the United States Navy.^[4] He worked for Lockheed for 25 years. From 1970 to 1973, Hodgson served as Richard Nixon's Secretary of Labor, and from 1974 to 1977, he served as the U.S. Ambassador to Japan under Gerald Ford.^[5][6]

Beginning in 1977, Hodgson served as the Chairman of the Board of the Uranium Mining Company. Hodgson served as an adjunct professor at University of California, Los Angeles and was visiting scholar from the American Enterprise Institute.^[7]

Following the death of former Labor Secretary W. Willard Wirtz on April 24, 2010, Hodgson became the oldest living former Cabinet member. He died on November 28, 2012, in Malibu, California, and is interred at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, in Los Angeles, California.^[1]

Publications

• "American Senryu", The Japan Times, 1992 (a collection of senryū, short humorous poems similar to haiku)
• "Doing Business with the New Japan", 2000 (written with Yoshihiro Sano and John L. Graham)