Joseph Thomas "Tom" West III (22 November 1939 – 19 May 2011) was the protagonist of the Pulitzer Prize winning non-fiction book The Soul of a New Machine. West worked for Data General Corporation as a hardware engineer and vice president, retiring as Chief Technologist in 1998. West died at the age of 71 in his Westport, Massachusetts home of an apparent heart attack. He is survived by two daughters, one of whom is Jessamyn West.
His nephew, Christopher Schwarz, is a former editor of Popular Woodworking magazine, author of The Anarchist Toolchest, and co-founder of Lost Art Press.
Famous quotes containing the words tom and/or west:
“And the Angel told Tom if he’d be a good boy,
He’d have God for his father & never want joy.
And so Tom awoke and we rose in the dark
And got with our bags & our brushes to work.
Tho’ the morning was cold, Tom was happy & warm,
So if all do their duty, they need not fear harm.”
—William Blake (1757–1827)
“Out where the handclasp’s a little stronger,
Out where the smile dwells a little longer,
That’s where the West begins.”
—Arthur Chapman (1873–1935)