Jack Stapleton Jr., a veteran Missouri newspaperman and syndicated columnist, has died. He was 76.

Stapleton died Tuesday at a nursing home in Kennett, Mo., where he had been for about one week, said his daughter, Sally Stapleton. She said he had been in declining health for several months.

"He wasn't in any pain and didn't complain, just slipped away," said Sally Stapleton, deputy executive photo editor for The Associated Press in New York.

Stapleton's family owned The Daily Dunklin Democrat at Kennett from 1953 to 1989, when he sold the newspaper to Gary Rust and Sherman Smith of Cape Girardeau. The newspaper is still owned by Rust Communications, which also published Stapleton's columns in its newspapers across the state.

After selling the newspaper, Stapleton focused until this year on a newspaper column syndicated through his Missouri News and Editorial Service, combining decades of experience as a government observer -- and sometime Democratic political player -- with commentary about the state of the state.

Stapleton also was a longtime advocate for mental health, serving multiple terms on the Missouri Mental Health Commission. Former Gov. Warren Hearnes, who first appointed Stapleton to the panel, said Wednesday that his old friend's efforts helped lead to the establishment of Missouri's regional mental health centers in the 1960s.

"If anyone was more of a leader on mental health, I don't know who it was. Jack was devoted to that field and always working to get more money for it, and it is a great legacy of his," Hearnes said.

Stapleton was steeped in politics from his youth, Hearnes said, noting that the newspaperman's late father, Jack Stapleton Sr. of Stanberry, chaired the Missouri Highway Commission.

The elder Stapleton owned weekly newspapers at Albany and Stanberry and his son moved to Southeast Missouri's Bootheel to run the Kennett paper. The Daily Dunklin Democrat was converted to a daily newspaper during Stapleton's tenure.

High hopes

In his columns, Stapleton tweaked self-serving politicians while expressing high hopes for Missouri's future.

He wrote this year: "Like scores of other columnists, blessed with the constitutional guarantees of free speech and a free press, I attempt, most often vainly, to provide readers with enough facts and background to reach their own conclusions about the pressing problems of the day."

Paul Stevens, vice president of the central region for The Associated Press, said Stapleton devoted his life to the service of his fellow man through journalism and his work with social services.

"He was a newspaperman who always made it clear where he stood and those who read his editorials and columns were better informed citizens for his work," Stevens said. "He will be missed."

Governor's compliments

Gov. Bob Holden recalled when Stapleton visited the Governor's Mansion last spring for an economic summit. "His analysis and insights benefited the leadership of Missouri for generations, and it was always a pleasure to be in his company," the governor said.

U.S. Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., praised Stapleton's "long history of public service. He made a number of contributions to his community, journalism and particularly the field of mental health. Jack will be greatly missed by many people in Missouri."

Stapleton is survived by his wife, Patricia, daughter Sally and two other children: Carrie Stapleton of Austin, Texas, and Jay Stapleton of Portland, Ore.

A memorial service is planned at 2 p.m. on Saturday at First United Methodist Church in Kennett.