Tom Weider, who worked at the Monterey Herald for four decades, died Saturday at age 84, the paper reported. He was a reporter, copy editor, editorial writer and gardening columnist at the paper. He retired in 1997.

“He was a gentle man from the bygone era of newspapers,” said Joe Livernois, executive editor of The Herald. “He was an unassuming fellow, so his humor really snuck up on you.”