LEAWOOD, KAS. — Dale C. Putman, longtime executive with Metz Baking Co. and Interstate Bakeries Corp. (I.B.C.), died Dec. 15. He was 92 years old.

Mr. Putman was born in Sioux City, Iowa, and was raised primarily in Ponca, Neb. Following his freshman year at Wayne State Teachers College in Wayne, Neb., he joined the U.S. Army in June 1945. He later attended Yale University to study Japanese and served the United States as an interpreter and an officer during his 18 months of service.

After the war, Mr. Putman completed his formal education at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, where he received a bachelor’s degree in pre-law and a juris doctorate degree in law.

He began his career as the manager of the Credit Bureau of Sioux City, Iowa, before joining Metz Baking Co. in Sioux City in 1953 as legal counsel and corporate secretary. He later became president and chief operating officer of Metz, positions he held until joining I.B.C. as c.o.o. in 1976. In 1977, he was named president of I.B.C., and three years later he added the title of chief executive officer. He resigned his positions in April 1984, though he continued as a member of the company’s board of directors and in a consulting role for the next several months.

“I’ve come to the conclusion in recent weeks that it’s time for a change in management at I.B.C.,” Mr. Putman said at the time of his resignation in 1984. “In the last several years, I’ve directed bringing the company’s baking plants to excellent condition. We’ve spent $100 million on modernization and building, and our facilities are among the finest in the industry. But it’s now time for a more marketing-oriented chief executive at Interstate, and that’s why I’ve decided to step aside.”

At the same time, Mr. Putman stepped down as chairman of the board of trustees of the American Institute of Baking (now AIB International) and as a member of the Baking Industry Exposition Committee.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Alice; his mother, Catherine; and his sister, Patricia. Survivors include 7 children, 17 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Serra Club of Kansas City in Kansas or Catholic Charities Hospice.