SYDNEY, Australia -- Sir Alex Mackay, a director and former deputy chairman of the worldwide media company News International, died of a heart attack, the company announced Sunday. He was 73.
Sir Alex, a London resident, died Saturday at his holiday home at Mooloolaba, Queensland, 50 miles north of Brisbane, a News International spokesman said.
In 1969, he joined News International at the invitation of the chairman, Rupert Murdoch. News International and its subsidiaries own newspapers in three continents, including the Times and Sunday Times of London, the New York Post and the Boston Herald American.
Sir Alex is survived by his wife and three children from his first marriage. His first wife, Muriel, was kidnapped from their home in Wimbledon, a London suburb, in 1969 and murdered. Her body was never found.
Two men, who had demanded 1 million pounds for her return, were imprisoned for life for her abduction and murder.
Sir Alex was married again in 1973 to Australian-born Beverley Hylton, widow of English impresario Jack Hylton.
Murdoch Sunday described Sir Alex as 'a great and loyal friend and a devoted family man.'
A funeral service will be held at Buderim, Queensland, on Wednesday.
