Obituaries |
2008
Werner Von Rosenstiel
The fascinating life of Werner Von Rosenstiel ended July 6. The 97-year-old one-time exchange student at UC (1935-36) was trained as a soldier in Adolf Hitler's army. He escaped to the United States to marry his first wife, Marion Ahrens, whom he met while studying in Cincinnati. Against German orders, Von Rosenstiel stayed in the states to pursue his legal education. When World War II began, however, he became an enemy alien of the U.S. After proving his loyalty to America, the young attorney was eventually drafted by the U.S. Army and (after a stint in the Foreign Legion) was sent back to Europe to help prosecute Nazi war criminals. Von Rosenstiel, who retired from both an American and German law firm, returned to UC in 2001 with his second wife, Anne, to donate his vast collection of historical materials, all of which are housed in the Von Rosenstiel Reading Room on the third floor of McMicken Hall. Read the complete feature on Von Rosenstiel or read a review of his book, "Tales of an American Soldier."
DOLORES STRAKER
Former dean Dolores Straker, 61, died Friday April 4 at her family home in Long Island, N.Y. From 2003-07, Straker served as dean of University of Cincinnati Raymond Walters College. Previously, she spent five years as the university associate dean for academic affairs for the City University of New York (CUNY) and served as the CUNY chancellor's designee on theboard of directors for the New York State Higher Education Services Corp. For more than 12 years, she was a board member of the Tri-State Consortium of Opportunity Programs in Higher Education representing CUNY and New York State. Straker also spent many years with York College, a branch of the CUNY system in Jamaica, N.Y.
PATRICIA CORBETT
Philanthropist
Patricia Corbett died in her sleep Jan. 28. She and her husband, J.
Ralph, who proceeded her in death, contributed millions of dollars and
thousands of volunteer hours to support the arts in Greater Cincinnati,
including the College-Conservatory of Music’s Corbett Center for the
Performing Arts, which includes the Patricia Corbett Theater and the
Corbett Auditorium.
The Corbetts founded the Corbett
Foundation with part of the proceeds from the sale of NuTone, the
door-chime company that Ralph founded in the 1930s. Over the years, the
foundation funded Music Hall’s Corbett Opera Center and Corbett Tower,
the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s Corbett Education Endowment,
Riverbend Music Center’s Pavilion, CET television programming, as well
as a theater and string quartet-in-residence at Northern Kentucky
University.
Upon her death, Patricia left a major portion of
her estate for creating the Corbett Endowment at CCM to improve
facilities, faculty, dance programming and community education
programming. Other estate gifts will benefit the Jean Reis Endowment
for Theater Design and Production, an endowment created by the Corbett
Foundation in 1995; the J. Ralph Corbett Audio Production Center at
CCM's Electronic Media Division; and the Robert Werner Recital Hall.
The
exact value of the gifts will not be known until expenses are
calculated, but the advisors estimate it will exceed $30 million.
Watch a 57-minute video, “Corbett Legacy,” at CET. (Link is at the bottom of the page.)
TED CORBITT
Ultrarunning legend and 1952 Olympian Ted Corbitt, Ed '42, died in December 2007. The 87-year-old became an icon in the running world after completing nearly 200 marathons and ultramarathons. Corbitt was the first black U.S. marathoner in Olympic history by age 33. He became a 100-miler by 50 and ran 134.7 miles in 24 hours by age 54, an American record. Corbitt helped found the New York Road Runners club and was its first president. Corbitt graduated UC with a master's in physical education, pursuing a career as a physical therapist and went on to make a science of measuring road courses, publishing a book on the subject in 1964.
Read Corbitt's advice for "How to go the distance"
JONI HERSCHEDE
UC supporter Joan Herschede, HonDoc '04, better known as "Joni" and famous for wearing stylish hats, passed away in December 2007 at age 67 after having two strokes. She was a former UC Trustee, UC Foundation Trustee, member of the UCATS Board of Directors and charter member of the Charles McMicken Society. She had donated millions of dollars to UC, the alma mater of her late husband, Mark, and had also received numerous awards, including the 2005 UC College of Business Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award, the UC Award for Excellence and the National Society of Fundraising Executives Outstanding Volunteer Award.
She was former owner, with Mark, of Husman Snack Foods and, with other family members, of the National Underwriter Co. Joni had also been owner, president, secretary, CEO and director of the Frank Herschede Co., a downtown Cincinnati retailer of fine jewelry, china, silver and crystal. She ardently supported UC, the zoo, the ballet and children's clubs, both financially and through many volunteer efforts.
PAUL TIBBETS
Paul Tibbets, who piloted the B-29 bomber Enola Gay when it dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, died in November 2007 at age 92. He had attended UC intending to study medicine, but enlisted as a cadet in the Army Air Corps in Fort Thomas, Ky. The pilot and commander of the 509th Group retired as a brigadier general, was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame and received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal, the Purple Heart, the Legion of Merit, the European Campaign Medal, the Joint Staff Commendation Medal, the American Defense Service Medal, the WWII Victory Medal, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award and the American Campaign Medal.
Watch a historic video of Paul Tibbets discussing the bombing.
Watch a video about the Enola Gay.
Read more about Paul Tibbets and the Enola Gay.
Developer of the first prescription antihistamine, George Rieveschl, A&S '37, MS (A&S) '39, PhD (A&S) '40, HonDoc '56, passed away in September at age 91. Before his death, the engineering professor emeritus and former UC vice president made one last gift to his alma mater -- a $1 million bequest, which brought his gifts for the year to a total of $2.85 million. Earlier in 2007, he and his wife, Ellen, had made a major contribution to the College of Medicine to create a professorship for diabetes genomics research.
Rieveschl had developed Benadryl while serving UC as a researcher and professor of chemical engineering. The drug went on the market in May 1946, and the patent expired in 1964. Today, it is found in dozens of allergy medicines and sleep aids under the name diphenhydramine hydrochloride.
After Rieveschl left teaching, he became a senior vice president at Parke-Davis and a business consultant. In 1970, he returned to UC as vice president of research. A few years later, he became the founding chairman of the University Foundation Board of Trustees. When he retired, he was vice president of special projects for UC.
He was a member of the International Science and Engineering Hall of Fame, as well as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the New York Academy of Science. He actively supported the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning, the College-Conservatory of Music and the College of Pharmacy. The Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce named him a Great Living Cincinnatian.
ARTHUR DARACK
Arthur Darack, CCM '48, MFA (CCM) '50, a former Cincinnati Enquirer columnist, author, CCM adjunct professor and an influential figure in the Cincinnati arts world, died in June at the age of 89. Darack wrote for the Enquirer from 1952-67, was a program annotator for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, launched one of the country's first urban-arts and leisure publications outside of New York in the '60s (a monthly magazine called "Dimension: Cincinnati") and served at CCM from '60-67. He left Cincinnati to become the senior fine arts editor of Encyclopedia Britannica in Chicago, where he also freelanced with the Chicago Daily News, then the Chicago Tribune. He went on to become the managing editor of Consumers Digest Magazine, a syndicated columnist whose column“Buy Right” was carried in more than 100 newspapers, the author and publisher of a series of consumer how-to books and eventually the investments editor for the Hume MoneyLetter. He continued to write newsletter investment columns and was a successful day trader for the rest of his life.
S. TED ISAACS
S. Ted Isaacs, Eng '36, Eve '45, an author and consulter, died in April, three weeks after attending his beloved Xavier Classical Guitar and Piano Series, which he had so generously supported through the years. His love for both engineering and the arts is reflected in the fact that after earning his chemical engineering degree at UC, he returned a few years later to get an associate degree in liberal arts through Evening College. "I got a liberal arts background, which a lot of engineers should have and don't," he once remarked. In 2002, Isaacs sponsored the establishment of the S. Ted Isaacs Prize Paper competition at UC. The annual contest encourages engineering students to become well-rounded engineers by honoring their writing skills. Isaacs sponsored the annual contest to reinforce the values and standards that he had upheld throughout his 90 plus years.
MICHAEL FRANK
While serving in the Army in Iraq, Spc. Michael Frank, Ed '98, died in May when the Humvee in which he was riding struck an explosive device. Frank, 36, was serving his second tour and his first Iraq deployment. He was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg, N.C. He was buried in Cincinnati.
PAT RENICK
Well-known sculptor and fine arts professor emerita Pat Renick died in May from complications following leg surgery. She was on UC faculty from 1984 until her retirement in 2001. Among her most famous works were large-scale sculptures made from a VW Beetle and a U.S. Army helicopter, titled respectively, “Stegowagenvolksaurus” and “Triceracopter: The Hope for the Obsolescence of War.” Her works had been shown at the Cincinnati Art Museum and the Contemporary Arts Center. UC gave her an Award for Excellence at the International Sculpture Center Gala in 2003.
One of the university's staunchest supporters died in February. John "Jed" Small, Bus '40, passed away at age 89. Small had been the Alumni Association's director from '49-70 and created the alumni travel program and the UC Day Banquet. He then served as assistant to the president under Warren Bennis, Henry Winkler and Joseph Steger. He retired in 1987, but remained active through the men's honorary Sigma Sigma. Back in 1946, he had co-founded the annual Sigma Sigma Carnival, and in '92, he chaired the organization's centennial celebration.
View video created to honor him in 2006.
BRIAN ROWE
Brian Rowe, HonDoc '87, former CEO of GE Aviation and UC supporter, died in February at age 76 in Philadelphia. Rowe's name is familiar in the College of Engineering, where he established the Brian Rowe Center for Women in Engineering. In his field, he is renowned for playing a key role in the development of the world's most powerful engine, GE90, which is used on Boeing's 777. France awarded him its highest civilian honor, the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, in '85 for his work with the CFM56 engine, the most-produced jet engine in commercial aviation. Rowe had also launched several other jet engines, including the CF34, the CF6-80C2 and the F110 fighter engine. In 2005, his autobiography, "The Power To Fly: An Engineer's Life," was published. Although Rowe retired as chairman of GE Aviation in 1995, he had maintained an office at the Evendale, Ohio, plant.
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Julie Benken |
Well-known Bearcat band member, Julie Benken, A&S ’96, died of cancer in January at the age of 33. As a student, she had been a drum major for the Bearcat Band, then volunteered with the band after graduation before joining the unit as a staff member seven years ago. “Julie was one of the most enthusiastic supporters of the band,” says band director Terren Frenz. “She really did breathe red and black Bearcat Band. We should all be blessed with such strong passion for something.”
Her parents, Robert and B.J. Benken, are establishing a memorial fund for a UC band scholarship in Julie's name. Donations may be directed to the Julie Benken Memorial Drum Major Scholarship Fund of the U.C. Bearcat Marching Band, U.C. Foundation, P.O. Box 19970, Cincinnati, OH 45219. Attn: Christa Flueck.
2006
JERRY BERNS
Daily, Jerry Berns, A&S '29, HonDoc '62, greeted the rich and famous of New York City as owner of Manhattan's famed "21" Club. He died on Dec. 21, 2006, at age 99. Berns had first worked as a drama critic at the Cincinnati Enquirer before leaving in '38 to join the "21," as it came to be called and which his brother, Charlie, had opened nine years earlier. By the time the family sold the business in '85 for a reported $21 million, "New York's favorite club" was a landmark, which had been frequented by Cary Grant, Aristotle Onassis, Ernest Hemingway, Frank Sinatra and Humphrey Bogart, who proposed to Lauren Bacall there.
Berns also had a notable impact on his alma mater as a founding trustee for the University Foundation, a regional vice president for the Alumni Association and chairman of the New York alumni chapter. A New York Scholarship Fund was also established in his honor.
Originally born Herman Jerome Bernfeld to Polish emigrants, Jerry is survived by his wife, Dorothy, whom he married in 2005. He previously outlived a daughter and two wives -- Martha to whom he had been married for 45 years and Suzanne to whom he had been married for 13 years.
For nearly five decades, Berns was the first man to greet patrons of the "21" after they checked their coats. Furthermore, every president from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Jimmy Carter had been a guest there.
HENRY MEYER
Henry Meyer, a Holocaust survivor, violin prodigy, CCM professor and founding member of CCM's world-famous LaSalle Quartet, died in December 2006 at age 83. Born in Germany, Meyer was a child prodigy, who performed as soloist with the Kulturbund Orchestra at age 14. Five years later, he was shipped to Auschwitz. In the end, he survived four Nazi death camps and played in an orchestra with other prisoners. In 1993, the beloved CCM instructor received the A.B. "Dolly" Cohen Award for Excellence in Teaching, based upon nominations by students and alumni. He was also the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the American Classical Music Hall of Fame, and the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education established a fund in his honor: the Henry Meyer Music and the Holocaust Project. He had been living in a nursing home, confined to a wheelchair, for the last few years of his life, a result of a hit-and-skip driver who critically injured him as he was leaving a Music Hall concert.
FRANK ETGES
Professor emeritus Frank Etges passed away in December at the age of 82. After 42 years as a biology professor in the College of Arts and Science, he had retired in 1995 after 42 years of service. His scholarly activity had been recognized by his appointment as a Fellow of the UC Graduate School, and while serving in the Army during WWII, he received the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart, among other medals.
ROBERT SCHMITT
Robert Schmitt, A&S '44, MA (A&S) '47, commonly considered "Hawaii's Human Encyclopedia," passed away at age 84 in November 2006. Schmitt gained his reputation as one of Hawaii's most noted historians by collecting endless quantities of data as the state statistician. Appointed in 1963 and serving until his retirement in '92, Schmitt was the only person to ever hold that title. For more than 30 years, he collected statistics on politics, population, economy and sociology to publish the annual "Hawaii Data Book." In 1985, he wrote "Historical Statistics of Hawaii," and he continued to publish the data book, now available online, long after his retirement. An author of more than 200 articles and five books, he is also recognized for developing a method of estimating population, one that the U.S. Census Bureau still uses to track population.
WILLIAM LICHT
Professor emeritus William Licht, Eng '37, MS (Eng) '39, PhD (Eng) '50, died in November at the age of 91. He had been a chemical engineering faculty member for 48 years, serving as its department head from 1952-67. In '86, he received the college's Distinguished Alumni Award, and recently, Dow Chemical dedicated a laboratory at UC to honor him. He had been the company's first co-op student in Midland, Mich., in the '30s. As a UC professor, Licht wrote a book on air pollution control, considered a fundamental textbook and one that is still used today. He was also involved with the city's air pollution control board and with forming an academic program in air pollution control at UC.
DANIEL RICHFIELD
A former UC professor said to have a "great mind and an even greater heart" died Oct. 26. Daniel Richfield, MD '43, won UC's Award for Excellence in 1989 as clinical professor of pathology and dermatology. Richfield, who used his medical training at UC to earn a Bronze Star as a battalion surgeon and Army captain in World War II, became a pioneer in the field of dermatopathology. He founded the Richfield Laboratory of Dermatopathology in Cincinnati, where he worked until he retired at age 78. Richfield, a lover of art, music and tending to his orchids, spent the last several years living by the ocean in Maine with his wife Shirley. The two were married 65 years.
RICHARD BLINDER
Dick Blinder, DAAP ’59, a champion of historic preservation, died on unexpectedly on Sept. 7 at the age of 71, while working in Shanghai. A founding partner of Beyer Blinder Belle, he was best known for his cultural and performing arts projects, including the renovation of the Grand Central Station terminal in New York City, Ellis Island, the Ford Center for the Performing Arts on Broadway (which he created by merging two historic theaters into one), the Rubin Museum of Art, the Japan Society and the Hilton Theatre. Partner John Belle said Blinder’s work was inspired by social concern, service to the performing and cultural arts, and his interest in Asian culture.
Active in community and nonprofit organizations, Blinder founded the James Marston Fitch Charitable Trust, which gives grants in historic preservation, and helped found the Seventh Regiment Armory Conservancy, dedicated to preserving New York's armory and adapting it for performing and visual arts. He was also a trustee of the Century Theater Foundation, an off-Broadway Theater complex that produces classic and contemporary theater.
Read about his Ford Theater project.
WILLIAM DEMBER
Considered a brilliant yet humble man, William Dember, professor emeritus of psychology and former department head, passed away in September 2006 at the age of 78. During his 47 years on UC's faculty, he supervised more than 63 master’s theses and 100 doctoral dissertations. His reputation, however, extends to an internatioinal level. A Google search for his name brings up 20,000 hits, including his groundbreaking text "Psychology of Perception," his research on the effect of peppermint oil on mental accuracy and his studies of as optimism and pessimism. Professor Joel Warm, a colleague since the 1960s, called Dember “the greatest psychologist I have been privileged to know.”
PAUL NOHR
At age 66, Paul Nohr, astronomer with the Cincinnati Observatory Center and UC instructor, died suddenly in June of a rare kidney sarcoma. He was known for providing technical support for UC's astronomy lab and had served as the observatory's coordinator from 1979-99, managing daily operations, maintaining equipment, writing software, giving tours and lecturing. He also had restored the observatory's two historic refracting telescopes, originally built in 1842 and 1904, and his comet photographs, shot through the telescopes, have been used by NASA.
RICHARD VILTER
Richard Vilter, 95, UC professor emeritus of medicine and former president of the American College of Physicians, died in August 2006. Internationally known for his work in nutrition and diseases of the blood, Vilter founded the College of Medicine's hematology division in 1946, a time when few of its kind existed in the U.S. He headed the division until '56 when he became chairman of the department of internal medicine, a position he held until '78.
Highly honored, Vilter was one of the first recipients of the college's Daniel Drake Medal; was named the Physician of the Year by the National Foundation March of Dimes; was recognized for outstanding contributions in nutrition by the American Medical Association; and was named a "Great Living Cincinnatian" by the city.
"Dr. Vilter was a remarkable scientist, physician, teacher, leader, and humanitarian. His death is a great loss for the department," says Bradley Brittigan, UC's internal medicine department chair.
JONATHAN RIESS
Jonathan Riess, professor of art history and former director of the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning's School of Art, died in the summer of 2006. He was considered an expert on 15th century Italian art and was most recently the director of graduate studies at DAAP. Read the memorial by student Jane Beck Sansalone.
GUSTAV CARLSON
Gustav Carlson, professor emeritus and former head of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, died in June 2006 at age 96. Easily remembered for his Swedish accent, he taught at UC from 1936-80. During World War II, he served as chief of the intelligence section at the Office of War Information in Kunming, China. Read a feature on Dr. Carlson.
AL SALVATO
Al Salvato, 56, media adviser for the UC student newspaper, the News Record, died in February of complications from leukemia. A teacher at both UC and Northern Kentucky University, Salvato was also a reporter and copy editor for the Kentucky and Cincinnati Post newspapers, a stringer for the New York Times and an adviser for the UC chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. At one time, he had been a runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize.
In a tribute to him, News Record editor-in-chief Julie Hollyday wrote: “Al's door was always open, and he was always ready to listen. Being an educator was his passion, and I believe he felt that he had found the perfect place to cultivate young minds to be passionate and ethical journalists. He cultivated us to be passionate people as well.”
Read memories of him from alumni writers across the country, as appeared in the News Record.
2005
FREDERICK WATSON, Tuskegee airman
While attending UC in the 1940s, Frederic Watson was drafted by the
Army. He was later accepted into the Negro Pilot Training Program at
the Tuskegee Institute where he remained until the war ended. Upon
returning to Cincinnati, he worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 32
years and finished his UC degree in 1964, when he received an award for
having the highest GPA of married male evening college graduates.
Frederick was 85.
HAL FISHBEIN
Psychology professor Hal Fishbein, 67, who was a primary
source in the UC Magazine's story "Are Moral Values Slipping in
America?" passed away in October, only a few months after publication.
The McMicken College of Arts and Sciences published a memorial to him.
2004
AARON LEVINE
Aaron Levine, HonDoc '96, he indefatigable cofounder of the University
of Cincinnati’s popular Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR),
died in June 2004. Aaron Levine was 85.
A Harvard graduate, Levine attended German language classes at UC after
retiring in 1982 as director of operations research for Federated Department
Stores. While he enjoyed learning alongside youthful students, he thought
it might be interesting to share classes with peers who had similar life
experiences. After visiting an elder-studies program at Harvard, Levine
decided UC needed one, too.
Working with the late Jean Eggers of the College of Evening and Continuing
Education in 1990, Levine designed curriculum and recruited moderators
for what became the first ILR program in Ohio. Thousands of 55-plus students
were drawn to the eclectic mix of noncredit fare, and asked for more.
Levine received an honorary doctor of humanities degree from UC in 1996
in appreciation for his ILR efforts. He was also elected to the Ohio Senior
Citizens Hall of Fame.
THOMAS KANE
Professor and assistant department head, University of Cincinnati Department
of Biological Sciences was a naturalist who loved the wilderness, an evolutionary
biologist who could quote Darwin, a widely respected colleague and a gifted
teacher. Thomas Kane died unexpectedly in June. He was 59.
In his quiet, intelligent way, Kane and his colleagues did extensive studies
of cave organisms in Romania, following up by coauthoring “Adaptation
and Natural Selection in Caves” for Harvard Press. The work received
critical acclaim for its clarity in explaining the role of natural selection
and adaptation in evolution.
Gifted with wisdom, grace and humor, the professor shared his scientific
method with graduate students. He counseled them to approach each study
by considering not only the narrow question at hand, but the more complex,
theoretical implications.
A research endowment has been established at UC in the professor’s
name: Thomas Kane Memorial, Department of Biological Sciences, University
of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH 45221-0006.
THURMAN OWENS
Former Bearcat football captain and UC administrator, Thurman Owens, Ed
'50, died in February '04 at age 78, following a career as a teacher,
coach, Marine Corps brigadier general, UC Foundation director and executive
director of the UC president's office.
Owens first came to the university on a football scholarship, after serving
with the Marines at the end of World War II. The new graduate taught and
coached in Indiana before being recalled to active duty during the Korean
War. He remained in the Marines for the next 23 years, serving in China,
Japan, Vietnam and Korea. Recipient of a Bronze Star, Legion of Merit
Medal and other honors, he retired in the '70s as deputy chief of staff
for programs at the Marine Corps headquarters.
He joined the University of Cincinnati Foundation in '78, was inducted
into the UC Athletic Hall of Fame in '87 and retired from the president's
office in '91, although he remained a familiar face on campus, particularly
through Sigma Sigma activities. He was especially involved in the funding
and construction of Sigma Sigma Commons in '98.
2003
WILLIAM BLACK
Internationally known pianist William Black, UC professor and department
head of Keyboard Studies, a College-Conservatory of Music faculty member
for more than 16 years, died in December 2003. He was 51.
An alumnus of the Juilliard School of Music and the Mozarteum in Salzburg,
Austria, the Dallas native performed concerto, solo and chamber concerts
in venues around the world, including the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Recital
Hall and Lincoln Center. A recording artist as well, Black made a memorable
album with the Iceland Symphony in 1991, playing the historic original
version of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s 4th Piano Concerto.
CCM has created the William Black Memorial Prize in Piano -- a scholarship
to support undergraduate piano study -- to honor the professor’s
memory. The only program of its kind in U.S. music schools and conservatories,
it awarded the $5,000 prize to the first two recipients in June.
Dean Douglas Lowry called the memorial “a touching reminder of the
powerful and lasting impact that Bill had on his students, colleagues
and the world of music. He was a superb teacher and artist, and a warm,
genuine, intelligent and witty human being.”
JACK WATSON
Dean Jack Watson, CCM '30, HonDoc '58, dean emeritus,
professor emeritus returned 33 years after he was graduated to lead the
College-Conservatory of Music through a difficult time (1963-74). He died
during the summer of 2003 in Florida at 94.
While dean, Watson found funding for new scholarships, facilities and
projects; hired talented new faculty; shook up existing members by introducing
new ideas; and found ways to recruit exceptional students, such as Kathleen
Battle and Barbara Daniels.
Current Dean Douglas Lowry called Watson "the founder of the modern-day
CCM." "His vast background in radio, television, music education,
vocal performance and management were all called into action as Jack brought
the college into national prominence," Lowry observed.
Music education was Watson's overriding passion, but he funded his postgraduate
studies through his talents as a commercial radio singer, contract motion
picture actor (screen tested for the Rhett Butler role in "Gone With
The Wind"), singer with the Harry James and Andre Kostelanetz orchestras
and on radio shows hosted by Kate Smith, Burns and Allen and Bob Hope.
SID GILLMAN
Indeed the football world lost one of the greatest football minds in the
history of the sport when hall of fame coach Sid Gillman passed away in
January 2003. For the University of Cincinnati, however, the loss was
a bit more personal. His six seasons as head coach (1949-54) of the Bearcats
mark the most successful period for football in UC history. During his
tenure, the Bearcats were 50-13-1, played in four conference-title games
and two bowl games.
"This is not only a great loss for the University of Cincinnati and
our football program, but for the sport of football as a whole,"
former UC head football coach Rick Minter said. "He was a true pioneer
of the game, developing innovations that were decades ahead of his time."
Gillman left UC in 1955 for the head coaching position with the Los Angeles
Rams. He coached both the Rams and the Chargers off and on through 1971
and eventually won a Super Bowl ring in 1980 while serving as quarterbacks
coach for the Philadelphia Eagles. Many consider Gillman the father of
the West Coast offense for his early development of a passing scheme that
spread the field and gave quarterbacks more options to throw the ball.
Gillman is also known as one of the first to break up game films to analyze
a team's approach to on-field situations, a revolutionary tactic in those
days. UC's enormous library of old game films is a testament to Gillman's
success and innovation -- the same characteristics that landed him in
both the College and National Football League halls of fame.
LINK: Gillman’s greatest hits
2002
DORIS TWITCHELL ALLEN
Doris Twitchell Allen, a pioneering child psychologist and professor emerita,
died in April 2002. She was 100. Allen, associate professor of clinical
psychology, retired in 1962. She developed the Twitchell-Allen Three-Dimensional
Personality Test in 1948 and was an early advocate of psychodrama, which
encourages patients to act out their conflicts. She founded psychological
services at Cincinnati's Children's Hospital in 1936 and years later founded
Children's International Summer Village, a month-long camp that unites
more than 150,000 children from 100 countries to promote international
understanding. Her career included a nomination for a Nobel Peace Prize
in 1979 and the Freedom Medal in 1999
ED JUCKER
Ed Jucker, Ed '40, legendary coach of the '61 and '62 national championship
UC basketball teams, died in February 2002. The South Carolina resident
was 85. Jucker returned to UC in 2000 to be honored by the athletic department
for his contributions to UC baseball, which he coached for seven years
beginning in 1954. Sandy Koufax was among the players who attended the
weekend of events to honor their former coach. Jucker's name remains in
the record books as the college basketball coach with the highest winning
percentage in the NCAA Tournament (.917).
JORGE CARRO
Jorge Carro, a former dean at the UC College of Law, died in January 2002.
Carro, 77, an immigrant from Cuba, came to UC in 1976 as head law librarian
and associate professor. Two years later he was promoted to acting dean.
Carro was also former chairman of the ethics committee of the Cincinnati
Bar Association.
2001
ALBERT HAGUE
Albert Hague, CCM '42, Tony Award-winning composer, died in November
2001 at the age of 81. He composed the music for "How the Grinch
Stole Christmas" in 1966. Hague's Broadway breakthrough came in 1955
with "Plain and Fancy." His "Redhead" won nine Tonys
in 1959. Hague appeared in several movies throughout his career, including
a role as Professor Shorofsky in "Fame," the 1980 film and popular
TV series.
STAN MATLOCK
Stan Matlock, BusAd '47, a familiar voice to many Cincinnatians for decades,
died in September 2001. Matlock's "Magazine of the Air" radio
programs played on several Cincinnati stations throughout his broadcasting
career, and at one time in the '60s the storyteller drew a 50 share (half
of all listeners). The Melbourne, Fla., resident was 78.
LOU OSINSKE
Lou Osinske, the former director of educational services at UC, died in
September 2001. Osinske had a distinguished 30-year career with UC. Her
family has established a scholarship fund in her memory.
THEODORE McCARTY
As president of the Gibson Guitar Co. in the '50s and '60s, Theodore McCarty,
Eng '33, helped develop the instrument that forever changed the music
industry -- the electric guitar. He died in April 2001 at the age of 91.
Under McCarty, Gibson produced the Les Paul, the Flying V and the Firebird
-- now classic designs played by guitar greats like Eric Clapton, Jimmy
Page, BB King and Jimmy Hendrix. In the '90s, McCarty worked as a consultant
to the Paul Reed Smith company, which paid him the ultimate compliment
by naming a guitar after him, an honor usually reserved only for high-profile
musicians.
2000
LEO HOLLISTER
Leo Hollister, A&S '41, MD '43, a pioneer in the field of psychopharmacology,
died in December 2000. His research in the '50s played a role in the development
and acceptance of drugs for treating mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.
Hollister also became known for his study of LSD and marijuana.
THEODORE "TED" BERRY
National civil rights leader Ted Berry, A&S '28, Law '31, died in
October 2000, three weeks short of his 95th birthday. Born in rural Kentucky,
Ted graduated from Woodward High School as Cincinnati's first black valedictorian,
then earned his UC degrees while working at the Newport steel mill. After
graduation, Berry was hired as Hamilton County's first black assistant
prosecuting attorney, then went on to become a civil-rights attorney for
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Later
President Franklin D. Roosevelt named him morale officer for the Office
of War Information, and President Lyndon Johnson appointed him head of
Community Action Programs, which included Head Start, Jobs Corps and Legal
Services. Back in Cincinnati, he served on the Ohio Committee for Civil
Rights Legislation and created Cincinnati's first Community Action Commission,
before becoming the city's first black mayor in December ’72. After
his death, Cincinnati City Council named three projects in his honor:
Theodore Berry Head Start Children and Family Learning Center, the Theodore
Berry International Park on Eastern Avenue and Theodore Berry Way, a street
near the riverfront.
LINKS:
Struggles give "earning a degree" extra meaning
Editor's tribute to Mr. Berry
Theodore M. Berry showed them the way
Extensive biography, tributes and photos from the Cincinnati Enquirer.
JAMES LAVERTY
For nearly 30 years, UC students have been grabbing a bite to eat at Mr.
Jim's restaurant in Tangeman University Center. Mr. Jim's founder, James
Laverty, 70, passed away in May 2000. Students and alumni may remember
him as the "guy with the bow tie." In the last few years, Laverty
occasionally still worked in the restaurant that he opened at UC in 1971.
1999
AL HIRT
Al Hirt, CCM '41, HonDoc. '68, legendary Dixieland trumpeter,
died in April 1999 of liver failure at age 76. A native of New Orleans,
Hirt first came to Cincinnati in 1940 to study classical music at the
Conservatory of Music, now UC's CCM. By the 1960s, when he was being heralded
as "King of the Trumpet," Hirt returned to the university for
a special concert at Corbett Center, which included a performance of a
composition honoring one of his former teachers. A virtuoso jazzman for
five decades, Hirt impressed listeners with both the power of his delivery
and his spectacular technique. He made more than 50 albums, won a Grammy
for a non-jazz instrumental, was nominated for 20 more, gained popularity
as both a TV guest and host, toured with dance bands and played concerts
in a variety of musical styles -- from blues and jazz to classical Hayden
and Handel.
