James R. (Bob) Hagerty, based in Pittsburgh, is the lead obituary writer for The Wall Street Journal. Over the past four decades, he has worked as a reporter, editor and bureau chief for the WSJ and the International Herald Tribune in Hong Kong, London, Brussels, Paris, Atlanta and New York. He is the author of "Yours Truly" (Kensington Citadel, December 2022) and "The Fateful History of Fannie Mae (History Press, 2012).