Obert Clark Tanner (1904-1993) was born September 20 in Farmington, Utah. His mother, Annie Clark Tanner, was a wife of polygamist Joseph M. Tanner. After serving a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) mission in Germany, O.C. Tanner attended the University of Utah and eventually earned B.A., L.L.B. and J.D. degrees from that institution, in addition to an M.A. from Stanford University and many honorary degrees from other Utah schools. He married Grace Adams of Parowan, Utah on 5 August 1931.
In 1927, while still an undergraduate at the University of Utah, Tanner founded an business in the basement of his mother's home and began selling commemorative class rings and pins to graduates throughout Northern Utah and eventually manufactured his own products. In the 1940s, Tanner's business expanded to include employee recognition awards for corporations, and, in 1976, O.C. Tanner opened a retail jewelry store in downtown Salt Lake City. Ever successful, the O.C. Tanner Company provided medals for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as commemorative rings for athletes in the 2004 Athens and 2006 Torino Games.
As a philanthropist, Obert C. Tanner donated his time and money to myriad organizations for the arts and higher education. An instructor of Religious Studies at Stanford University from 1939-1944, Tanner also authored numerous books including The New Testament Speaks, Christ's Ideals for Living and an autobiography, One Man's Journey: In Search of Freedom . O.C. Tanner died 14 October 1993.
From the guide to the O.C. Tanner Company video collection, 1988-1993, (J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah)
