Obituary: Lewis Katz, 72, Media Mogul and Temple U. Patron

Lewis Katz, the co-owner of Philadelphia’s two daily newspapers and a major education donor in the region, was killed with six other people Saturday night in the crash of a private jet in Massachusetts, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Boston Globe report. He was 72.

Mr. Katz was the largest donor to Temple University, his alma mater, most recently giving $25-million in November. He also co-founded the Katz Academy charter-school network in his hometown of Camden, N.J. He was returning from a launch event for the Concord River Institute, an education nonprofit, at the home of author and historian Doris Kearns Goodwin when his plane ran off the runway and burst into flames, killing everyone on board.

His death came a week after he and fellow Philadelphia philanthropist H.F. Lenfest bought out partners to become the full owners of the Inquirer, the Philadelphia Daily News, and news site Philly.com. Mr. Katz made his fortune in the parking business and formerly owned the NBA’s New Jersey Nets and and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils.