Adobe co-founder and PDF co-inventor Dr. Charles Geschke passed away

On: April 18, 2021

Adobe co-founder Dr. Charles Geschke died on Friday at the age of 81 with his family. The company has announced this. Geschke started his career at the Xerox Parc research center. He is one of the fathers of the PDF format.

Charles Geschke, called Chuck, first studied mathematics and classical philology. After teaching mathematics at John Carroll University from 1963 to 1968, he switched to the emerging computer science courses early on and received his doctorate in 1972. In the same year, he started his career as a senior scientist at the Xerox Parc research center in Palo Alto.

Obituary for Dr. Charles Geschke

At Xerox, Geschke then got to know the second founder of Adobe, Dr. John Warnock. In 1982 they left Xerox together to raise Adobe. Dr. Geschke was on the board of the software group until last year when he finally said goodbye.

Obituary by Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen

In an obituary, the current Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen looks at the life and work of the founder. In an email to the workforce, it says:

It is with deep sadness that I announce that our beloved co-founder Dr. Chuck Geschke died at the age of 81 and left an indelible mark on our company and the world. This is a huge loss to the entire Adobe community and technology industry, for which he has been a guide and hero for decades.

As co-founders of Adobe, Chuck and John Warnock pioneered software that revolutionized the way people create and communicate. Their first product was Adobe PostScript, an innovative technology that provided a radically new way to print text and images on paper and started the desktop publishing revolution. Chuck instilled a relentless drive to innovate in the company that led to some of its most transformative software inventions, including the ubiquitous PDF, Acrobat, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, and Photoshop.

In recognition of his technical achievements, Chuck was awarded the prestigious National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the Computer Entrepreneur Award from the IEEE Computer Society, and the American Electronics Association Medal of Honor. After 18 years at the helm of Adobe, Chuck retired in 2000 and served on the board until last year when he moved to the emeritus board of directors.

As much as his inventions changed the world, his focus on people, purpose, and culture has profoundly influenced each of us at Adobe. As he always said, Chuck wanted to create a company he'd love to work for himself. He believed that good ideas come from all over the company and that it doesn't just matter what we do, but how we do it. Throughout his life, he devoted much of his time and talent to various philanthropic and nonprofit organizations.

I spoke to John today and he told me about their five-decade partnership: "In 1982, Chuck and I agreed that we should leave Xerox and start our own business. That was the beginning of Adobe. I would never have imagined having a better, more personable, or more capable business partner. Not having Chuck in our lives will leave a huge void and everyone who knew him will agree with me. "

I admired his brilliance, his kindness, and the values ​​that made up his character and I am grateful that I had the privilege of knowing and working with him. His absence will surely leave a great void in my heart.

As I mourn the loss of my long-time role model, my mentor, and friend, I am comforted by the knowledge that Adobe's best days are still ahead of us - just as Chuck would have liked.

Shantanu

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