DATE: Friday, July 18, 1997                 TAG: 9707180557

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B9   EDITION: FINAL 

DATELINE: NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.                LENGTH:   48 lines

L. PATRICK MELLON

Lawrence Patrick Mellon died July 15, 1997, at his home in New Rochelle. While the cause of death has not been determined, it may have been the result of complications related to epilepsy.

Mr. Mellon was a senior vice president, affiliate sales and marketing for ESPN Inc. and was based in its New York office. Prior to joining ESPN, he was vice president of programming for TeleCable at the multiple system operator's corporate office in Norfolk. His responsibilities included programming acquisitions for TeleCable's systems, programming supplier relations and affiliation negotiations, management of programming policy and financial planning, pay-per-view operations and development, and channel allocation.

Mellon joined TeleCable in 1983, having previously served as the assistant director of government relations and field operations for the National Cable Television Association (NCTA). Prior to the NCTA, he functioned as a staff attorney for both the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the Division of Advertising Practices, focusing on children's advertising rulemaking and the Subcommittee on Telecommunications Consumer Protection and Finance, where he worked on cable deregulations.

Mellon has served on the boards of several organizations, including Howard University's School of Telecommunications, and was also an adjunct professor in communications at both Hampton University and Indiana University (Bloomington). He was one of the founding members of the National Association of Minorities in Cable (NAMIC) and served on its board of directors during the first 10 years of the organization's development. He received NAMIC's Lifetime Achievement Award for dedicated service in May of 1996, and was inducted into that organization's Hall of Fame this past May.

Mellon, a native of New York, earned a B.A. degree in English Literature and Film Studies from Vassar College, an M.B.A. from the College of William & Mary, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Indiana University (Bloomington).

In addition to his wife, Aleta Renee Ryder Mellon, and two sons, Matthew and Brenden, Mellon is survived by his mother, Mrs. Minnie Mellon; father, Lawrence Mellon; a sister, Esther Thompson; and two nieces, several aunts and cousins.

A funeral will be conducted at 1 p.m. Saturday in Bank Street Memorial Baptist Church, Norfolk. Burial will be in Woodlawn Memorial Gardens. Hale Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Donations may be made to the Urban League, National Association of Minorities in Cable and the Epilepsy Foundation. ILLUSTRATION: Photo KEYWORDS: DEATH OBITUARY

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