CAVNAR, JOHN L.

BERNARDSVILLE — John L. Cavnar died Monday [August 1, 1994] after a short illness. He was 71.

Born in Kansas City, Mo., he was raised in Oak Park, Ill., and lived in Pasadena, Calif., and Boonton Township before moving to Bernardsville 23 years ago.

Mr. Cavnar was a freelance copy editor with advertising agencies working on New Jersey tourism promotions, and edited fiction and non-fiction trade books. He began his career as a reporter at Tobacco Jobber magazine and later was an editor at Ceramic Age magazine. He worked at Newark News from 1957 to 1972 as a reporter for the state desk, was bureau chief, and covered gubernatorial political campaigns before he became a feature correspondent. He was an assistant state editor when the newspaper ceased publishing in 1972. He also contributed to the Herald-Tribune.

He then joined the staff of the U.S.-Soviet Trade Council, a non- governmental group established by President Richard Nixon to carry out the policies of détente. He participated in trade missions at the Kremlin with Secretary Leonid Brezhnev and was managing editor of the Journal of the U.S.-U.S.S.R. Trade Council.

He was a Marine Corps veteran and served with the [4th] Raider Battalion. He was a graduate of the V-12 program at the University of Southern California. He also was an information specialist with the Marine Corps Reserves and the [U.S. Marine Raider] Association. He appeared in the movie “Gung Ho.”

Mr. Cavnar was a descendant of Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams.

He was a member of the Central New Jersey chapter of Mensa and was a published crossword puzzle constructor.

Survivors include his wife, Valerie Barnes; five children from a previous marriage; a son, Adam C. of Morris Township; four daughters, Kathryn of Cincinnati, Donna Goding of East Stroudsburg, Pa., Clancy of San Francisco and Shawnee Brown of Colliersville, Tenn.; a sister, Jane of Sanford, Fla.; and four grandchildren.

Arrangements were by Gallaway and Crane Funeral Home, Bernardsville.