Patrick Craig

Patrick James Craig, 76, died Sunday, May 21, 2023, in Lincoln, Nebraska. Even though he’d lived the past four years in the Cornhusker State, Pat always considered himself to be a native San Franciscan.
Up until his retirement in 2014, Pat worked his entire life as a writer at various newspapers in and around California’s Central Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. Starting out as a stringer for the Tracy Press Pat worked his way up to what he’d considered his dream job, a theater critic.
Starting in 1993, Pat was a columnist, critic and theater writer for the East Bay Times, reviewing shows from the smallest community theaters all the way up to following the hit musical Wicked from its rehearsals in San Francisco to its premiere on Broadway.
Pat won multiple journalism excellence awards in his half century of writing and rubbed elbows with Broadway and Hollywood stars.
He prided himself on offering honest but fair criticism to every show he reviewed, but in private would admit he’d seen more than enough productions of “The Phantom of the Opera” and “A Christmas Carol” for one lifetime.
A prolific writer, Pat finished two unpublished mystery novels, both set in 1930s San Francisco, and had a few more books he was working on.
Pat loved theater and, as a critic, saw four or five performances every week for more than two decades. After retirement he often described himself as the only man in the world who looked forward to coming into work every day.
Pat loved dogs, Diet Pepsi and a good baseball game.
Pat was preceded in death in 2019 by Kelly Gust, his wife of 46 years. He is survived by his son Sam Craig, daughter-in-law Tammi Marsh, sister Kathy Jansen and multiple nieces and nephews. Pat also considered Johnny Riker, Sam’s best friend since childhood, to be his second son.
A memorial service for Pat will be held in the Bay Area at some point in the summer or fall of 2023 and will be announced on Facebook by his son Sam Craig.
In lieu of flowers, Pat asked that friends and family listen to the Simon & Garfunkel song “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)” in his memory.