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In Memoriam: Welton Jones (1936-2022)
Preservationist, Arts and Theater Journalist
January/February 2023
SOHO Board of Directors (2001-2007)
Chairman, SOHO Theater Committee
San Diego Union, Union-Tribune Arts and Entertainment writer and critic (1966-2001)
San Diego has lost a booming voice for historic preservation and the arts, and a larger-than-life personality. A legend in the San Diego Union-Tribune newsrooms, a passionate writer, and a longtime friend, supporter, and advisor to SOHO and other important preservation groups—the Committee of One Hundred, Save Starlight, and the Balboa Theatre Committee—Welton Jones was one of our most avid and thoughtful advocates.
 On the set where Welton directed "Pirates of Point Loma, Legend of Old San Diego" at the Adobe Chapel in 2007. |
An irrepressible, insightful man with a talent for reviewing and contextualizing our arts and culture with a keen eye and understanding, Welton also had a great gift for telling the stories of our places and in doing so helped to save them.
“He could have been a full-time critic or a full-time preservationist, but he was impassioned and excelled at both,” wrote Ann Jarmusch, former Union-Tribune architecture critic.
Welton served on the SOHO board for seven years and as vice president for two terms, when he took his role as an ambassador and volunteer seriously. He was involved in every area where we needed help. From home tour docent to producer and director of seven SOHO theater productions, Welton exuded his own brand of leadership. Significantly, he also made history, producing the first play held in 133 years in San Diego’s first commercial theater at the Whaley House Museum in Old Town. Many will recall performances of “Gift of the Magi,” an outdoor “Midsummer’s Night Dream,” and “La Pastorella” at the Adobe Chapel, to name a few, enriched by the historic settings.
“I served with Welton on SOHO’s board, where he took an interest in mentoring and helping me navigate the growing responsibilities of the organization and my burgeoning role. He served on many boards and committees throughout his life, gathering a wealth of experience and information to share, and I was an enthusiastic recipient. Welton was famous for finding great lunch spots and we continued to meet up over the years. I am one of his lucky friends who got to speak to him just recently, a good long phone talk, with, as always, lots of laughter, and a good dose of sage advice. I will surely miss him,” said Alana Coons, SOHO education and communications director.
As a journalist and as a theater critic, Welton is a standout and his peers and fans have posted a mountain of tributes and accolades. With permission, we share a few with you.
“Welton seemed perpetually in the service of some noble mission—whether it was to try and save and restore the Starlight Bowl or the California Theatre, or to see to it that past heroes of San Diego’s stage scene received their proper due. In my experience, that passion also extended to his abiding engagement with the way the U-T covered the arts, even years after Welton had left the paper. He and I occasionally would have lunch, always at a place of his choosing (he seemed to get a real kick out of scouting out-of-the-way dining finds), and much of the conversation would focus on his ideas—savvy ones, as you might imagine, even if not always entirely practical in an era of scaled-down news budgets—for how we could better serve readers. He was forever in the game, and he continued writing about theater with passion and consummate skill long after his U-T days.” James Hebert, former Union-Tribune theater critic and playwright
“I am proud to have known Welton from both the theater community and the historic preservation world. He gave me some great reviews and a couple of not so good ones. He lived in a world where things had to be written both fast and good. You could do a play on opening night, go to the party afterwards, and then get a hard copy of the review at about 3am the next morning. He was the local critic that people cared most about pleasing.” Erik Hanson, SOHO board member and theater professional
“His journalistic presence in the newsroom, like his infectiously booming laugh, was indelible even after he retired. Ditto his tireless devotion to his craft and to causes he championed, such as saving historic San Diego theaters from demolition.” George Varga, Union-Tribune music critic
“I was a big Welton fan. I loved his passion for our craft and for the theater. He easily drew us all in with his enthusiasm and his pen. He had a big heart, a quick wit, and a great sense of pride in what he was doing. He challenged and pleaded with San Diegans to embrace the arts and become a big theater town…and we did. In early January [2023], there will be a handful of productions on Broadway that originated here. Welton deserves a lion’s share of the credit for that.” Karin Winner, former editor in chief, the Union-Tribune
“Welton has not left us and the city he loved. Within the Special Collections holdings of the SDSU library is the San Diego Union Performing Arts Department Records collection, a treasure trove of material on the local arts scene amounting to 40.45 linear feet of documents, clippings, photos, even Welton’s appointment books. It's all contained in more than 90 boxes and covers the period from the late 1940s to 2002. While the title says San Diego Union, from the description it just as easily could be named the Welton Jones Collection of San Diego Performing Arts. The editor of the Entertainment Department, Welton Jones, maintained these working files during his many years as a columnist for The San Diego Union and as an enthusiastic patron of the performing arts in San Diego. His entertainment staff added many items to the collection. Carl Larsen, former Metro editor of the San Diego Tribune and of the Union-Tribune, who, later, as the U-T Home section editor guided coverage of local historic preservation issues.
Welton never stopped writing or working to protect and preserve San Diego, especially our historic theaters and Balboa Park. Please revisit and enjoy a few of the advocacy and history articles written by and about Welton for SOHO’s publications.
San Diego Union-Tribune obituary
Welton Jones, remembered as a dedicated local conservationist and arts journalist, dies at 86
Scroll below for portraits of Welton Jones. Photos by Sandé Lollis, except where noted otherwise.
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Photo of a caricature of Welton Jones. "My visual tribute to dear friend Welton, after Hirschfeld."" Michael Canva, Washington Post arts columnist and artist, formerly of the Union-Tribune. "Being his Sunday editor was a full heart-and-soul experience."
