Larry McDonald
Lawrence Patton McDonald (April 1, 1935 – September 1, 1983) was an American physician, politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Georgia's 7th congressional district as a Democrat from 1975 until he was killed while a passenger on board Korean Air Lines Flight 007 when it was shot down by Soviet interceptors.[1]
For the musician, see Larry McDonald (percussionist).
Larry McDonald
September 1, 1983 (aged 48)
near Sakhalin, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Kathryn Jackson (1975–1983)
5
1959–1961
McDonald maintained one of the most conservative voting records in Congress and crusaded against communism. He became chairman of the John Birch Society in 1983, months before his death. He was remembered as a martyr by American conservatives.[2][3]
Early life and career[edit]
Larry McDonald was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, in the eastern part of the city that is in DeKalb County. General George S. Patton was a distant relation.[4] As a child, he attended several private and parochial schools before attending a non-denominational high school. He spent two years at high school before graduating in 1951.[2][5] He studied at Davidson College from 1951 to 1953, studying history. He entered the Emory University School of Medicine at the age of 17, graduating in 1957.[2][5] He interned at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. He trained as a urologist at the University of Michigan Hospital under Reed M. Nesbit. Following completion in 1966 he returned to Atlanta and entered practice with his father.
From 1959 to 1961, McDonald served as a flight surgeon in the United States Navy stationed at the Keflavík naval base in Iceland. He married an Icelandic national, Anna Tryggvadottir, with whom he eventually had three children: Tryggvi Paul, Callie Grace, and Mary Elizabeth.[2] In Iceland, McDonald asserted to his commanding officer that the U.S. Embassy in Reykjavik was doing things advantageous to communists, but was told he did not understand the big picture.[2]
After his tour of service he practiced medicine at the McDonald Urology Clinic in Atlanta.[2] He joined the anti-communist John Birch Society in 1966 or 1967.[6] He hosted thousands of people in his living room for Bircher-inspired lectures and documentaries, according to his first wife.[4] His preoccupation with politics led to a divorce.[2] He became known as an anti-abortion activist.[4] He made one unsuccessful run for Congress in 1972 before being elected in 1974. In 1975, he married Kathryn Jackson, whom he met while giving a speech in California.[2]
He served as a member on the Georgia State Medical Education Board and as chairman from 1969 to 1974.[5]
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