Marion Arthur Ellis

Marion Arthur “Art” Ellis October 14, 1938 - June 19, 2026

Marion Arthur “Art” Ellis died Friday, June 19 at The Forest at Duke in Durham, North Carolina after several weeks in hospice, surrounded by the love and care of his family. He was 87.

As an investigative reporter for The Charlotte Observer, where he worked for 19 years, Art was known for his tenacity, his wry sense of humor, and his hard-hitting stories. In 1981, he served on the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the series “Brown Lung: A Case of Deadly Neglect,” which led to health and safety reforms for textile mill workers. Art’s devotion to basic fairness, and his unswerving drive to expose government corruption and corporate wrongdoing, regularly drew the ire of the rich and powerful — a prospect he relished. Sued by a local police chief for libel, he emerged from the trial victorious and added the tale to the long list of what his grandchildren called “trouble stories,” which they loved to hear him tell.

Born on October 14, 1938 on his grandmother’s farm in Badger Township, Kansas, Art was a member of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma. A voracious love of books was sparked at an early age when he discovered a copy of Teddy Roosevelt’s African Game Trails at Darnell’s Shoe Repair in his hometown of Joplin, Missouri. On Saturdays, he would park his little brother Mike at the local drugstore with a stack of magazines while he snuck off alone to the movies — at least until the usher, Mike in tow, would locate him in the darkened theater.

A music teacher at Art’s elementary school introduced him to the cello and lent him one he could take home and practice, which he liked to do in the street. He got so good he landed a spot playing in the Joplin Youth Orchestra, igniting a lifelong appreciation of music. His love of newspapers started when he was ten years old as a delivery boy for the Kansas City Star. Not only did he make a whopping $3 a week, he also discovered that he enjoyed reading the paper.

Upon graduating high school at 17, Art headed to Chicago in the hopes of landing a job with United Airlines, only to be rejected as too young. He wound up working in the mail room of the flagship Conrad Hilton, where his older coworkers recognized his spark and urged him to pursue a college degree — a thought that hadn’t crossed his mind, he later said, since in his world “only rich kids went to college.” Moving home, he enrolled in Joplin Junior College, working nights as a cub reporter at the Joplin Globe to pay the bills. His English professor, Miss Cleetis Headlee, saw something special in him and drove Art and his co-conspirator Dale Allen 165 miles to meet with the dean of the prestigious journalism school at the University of Missouri. Both were accepted on the spot. Art enjoyed being a Big Man on Campus. He pledged Tau Kappa Epsilon, performed in a production of South Pacific, and helped resurrect the campus humor magazine Showme — until it was shut down for irking the school’s higher ups.

After graduating from Mizzou, Art served six months of active duty with the Marines on Parris Island before landing a job at the Charlotte Observer, as head of the bureau in Gastonia, North Carolina. It was there he spied a beautiful young woman, Diannah Champion, eating alone at Sweetland Restaurant. As he told it, she was reading one of his favorite books, Look Homeward Angel, and he slyly asked her for directions to the local library. On their first date, Diannah may have had an inkling that Art wasn’t her usual type when he needed her help starting his Renault — parked on a hill since its ignition was busted — so he could take her to the movie The Bad Seed. They were married in 1964 at Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina and celebrated 55 years of marriage before Diannah’s death in 2020.

After leaving the Observer, Art became a prolific author, often joining forces with Howard Covington. He published over 17 books including the biography of Terry Sanford and the histories of NationsBank, Myers Park Baptist Church, and the American College of Trial Lawyers. From 2001 to 2012 he served as the editor of the ACTL’s newsletter, The Bulletin, a position that took him all across America and abroad to Ireland and London. Other travel adventures were to Austria, Czechia, Slovakia, Bolivia, and Peru.

Art’s life was fueled, at heart, by his curiosity and compassion for everyone he met. He had a way of unearthing hidden gems from anyone’s life, be they waiters, store clerks, or racquetball partners. He treated friendships as a lifelong commitment, and for over a dozen years he hosted an annual Pig Pickin’ for his ever-widening circle of friends and colleagues. His sardonic sense of humor, marked by his deadpan delivery, elicited both laughter and groans in equal measure. At Myers Park Baptist he earned a reputation for being the coolest and funniest Sunday School teacher.

Despite his career, Art never let work interfere with his family life. When his daughters Maggie and Lizzie were kids, he was home for dinner most nights, even when it meant going back to the newsroom for hours afterwards. Family vacations to Pawleys Island with the Allens and Covingtons were legendary. When the grandkids started coming along in 2001, Art became “Papou” and Diannah “Yia Yia.” After moving to Durham, North Carolina in 2009, it was rare for them to miss a birthday party or school concert. Sunday lunches with the family were a weekly ritual.

Art is survived by his brother Mike Ellis of Morgantown, West Virginia, daughters Margaret (Maggie) Ellis Chotas and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Ellis-Furlong, sons-in-laws Harrell Chotas and Emmet Furlong, and grandchildren Georgia Chotas, Nicholas Chotas, and Ava Ellis-Furlong – all of Durham, North Carolina. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife Diannah, father Marvin Ellis, mother Mary Tipton, and Aunt Daisy Mae Ellis, who helped raise him and his brother Mike.

The family would like to give special thanks to the nurses, CNAs, and staff on 4th floor South at The Forest at Duke for their care of Art during his last chapters. In lieu of flowers, donations are invited to honor Art’s legacy by supporting one of three nonprofits that carry his passions forward: (1) the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, (2) the local journalism organization Deep South Today, and (3) the music educators at Kidznotes Durham.

For those he leaves behind, Art bequeaths a legacy of courage, curiosity, and commitment. He taught us that the simple act of listening to those around us — of giving others the gift of our consideration and concern — will yield a wealth of fascinating and moving truths. The lessons he lived by are as timely as they are timeless. Pay attention. Take risks. Don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself. Devote yourself to those you love, and to the world around you. Imagine.

A memorial service was held on July 19th at Watts Street Baptist Church. There is a video for those who could not attend in-person.