[citation needed] Thomas became a marketing and sales executive after Swanson was acquired by Campbell Soup in 1955.
He retired in 1970 after suffering a heart attack, then did consultancy and briefly directed Grand Central Art Galleries in New York City.
After Thomas' death in 2005, a Los Angeles Times opinion article that labeled him a "charlatan" spurred other newspapers to reexamine the TV Dinner's origins.
[4][5][6][7][8] As a result, dozens of publications printed retractions on obituaries that had called Thomas the TV Dinner inventor.
"[9] However, Pinnacle Foods, which currently owns Swanson, still credits Thomas with proposing the TV Dinner concept.