Nicholas Cook Laughter

Nicholas C. Laughter graduated from his earthly test on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. He was born on October 24, 1942, to Nicholas Cornelius and Edna Muriel Cook Laughter in Ogden, Utah. He was the sixth of seven children.

Nick was a cowboy from the minute he was born. He spent many summers on his Aunt Ruth and Uncle Prosper’s ranch in Wyoming. He worked everything from horses and cows to sheep. He was a bull rider and an accomplished horseman. He frequently rode his quarter horse, Rattler, through the Uintah Mountains during hunting season. And he could rope anything he threw his lariat at. He was a devoted outdoorsman and knew Ben Lomond Peak like the back of his hand. He fly-fished the Ogden River and knew all of the best trout holes. Nick spent many vacations camping in the Uintah Mountains with his family. He was equally at home in the ocean as in the mountains. While living on Catalina Island, he became certified as an open water scuba diver and spent many hours in the ocean. He loved exploring marine life and hunting sharks; seafood was a frequent meal in the home. He loved boating and spent many summers at Bass Lake in California, and many weekends at the beach, when living in California during his early career. He also spent time fighting fires for the U.S. Forest Service in Utah. 

He served in the Utah National Guard during the Vietnam War. His transport was taxiing onto the tarmac to head to Vietnam, when they were called back at the last moment, so he narrowly missed combat. He attained “Expert Marksman” level while in the Guard. He was an avid patriot and political buff throughout his life.

After starting his career in television, Nick went into the radio business. He graduated from the Bonneville Broadcasting School with high marks. He spent his career as a radio engineer for Bonneville International. He ran the transmitter for KBIG on Catalina Island for several years. He loved listening to ballads and enjoyed being the only employee in the building on the graveyard shift, when he moved to Kansas and worked at KMBZ/KMBR. He could crank the tunes as loud as he wanted! He found a line of work that he truly loved.

Nick was an avid reader his entire life and could recall details and events he had read about with amazing accuracy. His daughter once had him take a test that had been printed on a full page of the newspaper; it was over 150 questions long. The challenging questions involved science, geography, astronomy, and history. He only missed three of the questions, which involved geography and only because the names of countries listed in those questions had been changed over the course of the years.

We all loved and admired Nick, whether his title was brother, husband, dad, uncle, grandpa, or cousin. He entertained us all with his tales, his humor, and his penchant for scaring people. We know he is enjoying his reunion with lost loved ones on the other side of the veil. And while we will miss and mourn him for a while, the time will come when we will eagerly join him and reunite our family. Farewell for now and keep watching the skies. 

He married Marykathryn Blanch in the Salt Lake City Temple on December 3, 1969. He is survived by his wife; four children, Melissa D. Laughter, Shawna L. Sangberg, Cameron K. Laughter, and Brandon N. Laughter; seven grandchildren, Amber J. Laughter, Morgan A. Ipaktchian, Cannon L. Laughter, Brody B. Laughter, Chase C. Laughter, Reno S. Sangberg, and Memphis S. Sangberg; and two siblings, Karen A. Sherrill and C. Kirk Laughter. He was preceded in death by his parents and four siblings, Venice L. Turner, Doris M. Mortensen, Barbara J. Thurston, and James G. Laughter. 

Graveside services will be held on Friday, February 23, 2024, at 2 p.m. at Aultorest Memorial Park, 836 36^th Street, Ogden. Services entrusted to Lindquist’s Ogden Mortuary.  

Thank you to the many family, friends, and Danny at Lindquist for your service to Nick.  

We are so appreciative of your kindness and support.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to help with final expenses.