Richard Orr, 83, longtime Tribune rural affairs writer whose coverage of the Illinois State Fair earned him the honor of having a building named after him, died Sunday in St. Joseph Hospital in Chicago after a long battle with lymphoma. He joined the Tribune in 1942 and entered the U.S. Army in July 1943, where he held the rank of sergeant. During World War II, the Army assigned Mr. Orr to serve as press secretary to musician Glenn Miller while Miller was entertaining the troops and raising funds for the war effort. After returning to the Tribune in 1946, he worked as a business writer and was recruited to become the farm editor in May 1949. He later became such a fixture at the Illinois State Fair that the poultry building and rooster-crowing contest were named for him. Mr. Orr is a former president of the Chicago Press Club, former chairman of the Chicago Press Veterans Association and a former president of the Newspaper Farm Editors of America. He won several newspaper writing awards, including the Illinois Press Veteran of the Year award in 1997. There are no immediate survivors. Visitation will be from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday with a short service at 7:30 p.m. in Rowland Funeral Home, 4152 N. Sheridan Rd., Chicago. A second service will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday in Buffalo Methodist Church in Buffalo, Ill.
