According to the announcement made by his son, Richard B. Sellars, a former chairman and chief executive of Johnson & Johnson who fought to keep the firm in its New Jersey hometown, has died.

The New York Times reported on Sunday that Johnson, 92, died at his home in Osterville, Mass.

The newspaper further said that Sellars worked for Johnson & Johnson for 40 years, starting as a junior salesman and becoming its chief executive in 1973, only the second person outside the Johnson family to head the company.

Sellars' son, Richard Jr., recalled that the company was founded in New Brunswick, N. J., in 1886, but in the 1980s, as the city was in decline, some on its board of directors pushed for the company to relocate.

Sellars convinced the board to keep the company in its birthplace, and became active in efforts to revitalize the city's downtown, heading the New Brunswick Development Corp.

John Heldrich, a former executive at Johnson & Johnson, said, "He was so committed to the needs of the city."

The Times further said that Sellars is survived by his wife Doris, two sons, two daughters, nine grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. (With Inputs from Agencies)