Eugene Allen, White House butler to 8 presidents, dies

WASHINGTON - Eugene Allen, who endured a harsh and segregated upbringing in his native Virginia and went on to work for eight presidents as a White House butler, died Wednesday of renal failure at Washington Adventist Hospital in suburban Takoma Park, Md. He was 90.

Allen and his wife, Helene, were profiled in a Washington Post story in 2008 that explored the history of blacks in the White House.

The couple were excited about the possibility of Barack Obama's historic election and their opportunity to vote for him. Helene, however, died on the eve of the election, and Allen went to vote alone. They were married for 65 years.

Afterward, Allen, who lived in a simple house in Washington, experienced a fame that he had only witnessed beforehand. He received a VIP invitation to Obama's swearing-in, where a Marine guard escorted him to his seat. Eyes watering, he watched the first black man take the oath of office of the presidency.

Allen was besieged with invitations to appear on national TV shows, write a book and speak in public. He declined them all.

"He liked to think of himself as just a humble butler," his only child, Charles, said Thursday.

Allen was born July 14, 1919, in Scottsville, Va. In 1952, he heard of a job opening at the White House and was hired as a "pantry man," washing dishes, stocking cabinets and shining silverware for $2,400 a year.

During Allen's 34 years at the White House, he became maitre d', the most prestigious position among White House butlers, under Ronald Reagan.

When John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Allen was invited to the funeral. He declined. "Somebody had to be at the White House to serve everyone after they came from the funeral," he told The Post. When Jacqueline Kennedy returned to the White House, she gave him one of the president's ties.

Allen served entertainers including Sammy Davis Jr., Duke Ellington, Pearl Bailey and Elvis Presley. He flew aboard Air Force One. He sipped root beer at Camp David with Jimmy Carter and visited Eisenhower in Gettysburg, Pa., after he left the White House. Allen retired in 1986.