'Jack' Olson, 'a visionary'

From becoming a World War II pilot to producing paintings of life in space that are displayed in the Smithsonian Institution, John J. "Jack" Olson lived a life that far exceeded the accomplishments of most humans.

"He was a visionary. He was a writer. He was a fine artist," said his wife, Georgia. "He was a true Renaissance man, way ahead of his time."

Mr. Olson died Aug. 28 in his Normandy Park home of complications from cancer, which he had battled since 1985. He was 78.

Mr. Olson was born Oct. 24, 1922, in Bottineau, N.D. He went to high school there, attended the University of North Dakota, graduated from the Minneapolis School of Art and Design, and later received a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from what is now Central Washington University.

He served in the Army Air Forces in World War II as an instructor and pilot, surviving a midair collision in a B-24. Though the four-engine plane lost half of a wing, he was able to land it with no casualties.

After leaving the Army as a first lieutenant, Mr. Olson joined Brown & Bigelow, which makes promotional gifts for companies. While at Brown & Bigelow, he received 120 mechanical and design patents.

After going to work for Boeing in 1958, Mr. Olson worked on projects ranging from designs for a jetfoil to concepts that paralleled the later design of the Hubble Space Telescope and a mass-transit system in Morgantown, W.Va. He took medical retirement in 1985.

One of his most widely recognized activities involved producing visionary illustrations of space exploration, and 21 of his space paintings are on display at the Smithsonian.

In a 1984 Seattle Times article, Mr. Olson's skills as a preliminary-design engineer were described by his boss in Boeing space systems.

"Jack could take the sorriest of crude concepts, and when he got through painting it, it looked like we'd spent five years doing detailed design," Gordon Woodcock said. "He's a lot more than an artist. He's an inventor and an engineer, a natural design talent."

But Mr. Olson's proudest achievement, according to his wife, "was getting his wings as a pilot. His next proudest achievement was getting his diamond badge from the Soaring Society of America," which entailed flying a glider through a highly challenging series of courses to show increasing competency.

He also was a skilled photographer and held a master-photographer certification from the Photographic Society of America.

Besides his wife of 40 years, Mr. Olson is survived by four sons, John Olson and Robert Olson, both of Seattle, Thomas Weinerth of British Columbia and Robert "Kip" Malaska of Tacoma; and a daughter, Julia Weinerth Sischo of Seattle.

A fifth son, Michael Weinerth, died in 1997. Mr. Olson also is survived by five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. Sept. 23 at University Unitarian Church, 6556 35th Ave. N.E., Seattle.

In lieu of flowers, remembrances are suggested to the Highline Hospice, 12844 Military Road S., Tukwila, WA 98168.

Peyton Whitely can be reached at 206-464-2259 or pwhitely@seattletimes.com.