Brian Harriss

August 6, 2018

Brian Clement Harriss died unexpectedly on August 16, 2018, in Greenwich, Connecticut. The son of C. Lowell Harriss '34 and Agnes Murphy Harriss, he was born in New York City on February 13, 1949, and graduated from Bronxville (New York) High School. At Harvard he lived in Quincy House and was a member of the Hasty Pudding, Delphic Club, and Pi Eta. He received his AB, cum laude in government, with the Class in 1971, then went to Columbia University for his graduate studies, completing a JD in 1974 and an MBA the following year. Soon choosing business over law, he joined the investment banking department of Dean Witter on Wall Street. Over a long career as chief financial officer of several consumer-products companies, including PepsiCo and Cadbury Schweppes, he lived and worked for some years in Canada, Australia, and England. He retired in 2015 as chief executive officer of Turning Point Brands, a provider of tobacco and vapor products, but continued thereafter to work as a consultant to the firm. Formerly an avid runner and tennis player, in recent decades he transferred his passion to golf; he published a novella about the game, Foursome Follies, in 2005. He was survived by his wife of thirty-nine years, Lucinda (Acer); three children, Brett, Peter, and Lindsey; a twin sister, Martha 71; a brother, Gordon; and three grandchildren.