Sir Christopher Lawson died on March 5, 2007 in Oxfordshire, England. Lawson was born 31 October 1922 in Dalbeattie, Scotland but the family moved to Oxfordshire, England when he was 4 years old. He attended Magdalen College School, Oxford. He played hockey, cricket, rugby, tennis and was on the boxing team. He left school early and joined the RAF during WWII as a Path Finder Pilot. Following the war, he joined Proctor and Gamble as a sales representative. In 1965 Lawson took a job with Mars as General Manager of their drinks vending business, then known as Vendepac. He was subsequently appointed President of Mars Foods in the UK. His next assignment with Mars brought him to the US in 1965 to be the head of the snackfoods division known as Jack Candies in Rockaway, NJ. Lawson moved to Albany in 1978 as head of the Snackmaster Division of Mars. While in Albany he was very involved in community affairs. He was a member of the Albany Rotary Club and St' Paul's Episcopal Church. Finally, in 1980, he was appointed head of Global External Relations for Mars. Following retirement in 1981, he returned to England and settled in Great Witcombe, Glouchestershire. Back in England, he rekindled his earlier keen interest in politics and joined the Conservative Central Office and volunteered his services to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Consequently he played a crucial part in the Conservative Party during Lady Thatcher's premiership when he was Marketing Director for both the 1983 and the 1987 elections. He was close to both Denis and Margaret Thatcher, and often played golf with Denis. During the eight years he worked in the Conservative organization, he used his marketing skills to incorporate new methods of political communication thus streamlining the operation. In 1984 he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth for his political work and a few years later was granted the Freedom of the City of London. Because of his background with Mars and his successful marketing strategy when working for Margaret Thatcher, he was dubbed "The Man from Mars".