Davíð Oddsson obit

Davíð Oddsson, editor and former Prime Minister, has died

 

He was not on the list.

Davíð Oddsson, editor of Morgunblaðið, passed away at his home yesterday at the age of 78. With his passing, Iceland loses one of its most influential politicians of the past decades.

During his tenure as Mayor of Reykjavík, the city underwent major progress: development was extensive, and its finances were strong. When Oddsson stepped down as mayor, he became Prime Minister and led significant reforms following a long period of economic difficulty. A period of strong growth and increased national prosperity followed.

After leaving government, he took the helm of the Central Bank of Iceland, where he confronted severe challenges during the banking collapse while also laying the groundwork for the nation’s recovery from the crisis.

In the autumn of 2009, Oddsson became editor of Morgunblaðið and held the position ever since. Under his leadership, the newspaper and other media of Árvakur hf. fostered important public debate and coverage of issues of great concern to the nation. At the same time, these media outlets withstood various pressures and remain strong today as they bid Oddsson farewell with gratitude and sorrow.

Davíð Oddsson was born in Reykjavík on January 17, 1948. His parents were Oddur Ólafsson, a physician, and Ingibjörg Kristín Lúðvíksdóttir, a bank clerk. His surviving wife is Ástríður Thorarensen; they married on September 5, 1970. Her parents were Þorsteinn S. Thorarensen and his wife Una Thorarensen. Their son is Þorsteinn Davíðsson, whose wife is Heiðrún Geirsdóttir. They have two daughters.

Oddsson graduated from Reykjavík Junior College (MR). He briefly studied acting before completing a law degree from the University of Iceland.

He served as office manager of the Reykjavík Theatre Company from 1970 to 1972, parliamentary reporter for Morgunblaðið from 1973 to 1974, an employee of the book publishing company Almenna bókafélagið in 1975, office manager of the Reykjavík Health Insurance Service from 1976 to 1978, and its executive director from 1978 to 1982.

Oddsson was elected to Reykjavík City Council in 1974 and served until 1994, including as Mayor from 1982 to 1991. He was elected chairman of the Independence Party at its national congress in 1991 and held that role until he left politics in 2005. He was elected Member of Parliament for Reykjavík in the 1991 parliamentary elections and became Prime Minister that same year.

He served as Prime Minister until 2004, when he became Minister for Foreign Affairs for just over a year. He then left politics and became Governor of the Central Bank of Iceland and chairman of its board. He served alongside Eiríkur Guðnason and Ingimundur Friðriksson until 2009. On September 24 of that year, he became editor of Morgunblaðið together with Haraldur Johannessen.

Davíð Oddsson was a versatile figure who also wrote in various genres. He authored popular song lyrics and other poetry, wrote three television plays — Róbert Elíasson Comes Home from Abroad (1977), Stains on the White Collar (1981), and All is good (1991) — and co-wrote two stage works for the Reykjavík Theatre Company and the National Theatre: I want to enrich my country (1974) and Tales of Icelanders (1975).

He also produced a variety of radio programs between 1968 and 1975, including Radio Matthildur in collaboration with Hrafn Gunnlaugsson and Þórarinn Eldjárn, which enjoyed great popularity. He wrote an essay on Prime Minister Geir Hallgrímsson in the magazine Andvari in 1994 and published the short-story collections A few good days without Guðný (1997) and Stolen from the author of the Alphabet (2002).

In closing, the staff of Morgunblaðið and mbl.is express their gratitude for a productive and rewarding collaboration and extends their deepest condolences to Davíð Oddsson’s family.