 |
These pages contain all class notes from the Yale Alumni Magazine from 1957 on. The notes from the July 1957 issue through that of July 2004 appear unchanged from their original publication in the magazine save for the correction of misspellings and other small errors. Starting with the September/October 2004 issue, the notes here appear as they were submitted to the Yale Alumni Magazine. The edited notes as published in the magazine can be accessed via https://yalealumnimagazine.com/. The differences are minor. Gaps in coverage result from the absence of Class of 1957 notes in a few issues of the magazine over the years. Also, in keeping with changes in the magazine itself since 1957, the frequency of publication has occasionally changed.
Notes: January/February 2020
Notes: March/April 2020
Notes: May/June 2020
Notes: July/August 2020
Notes: September/October 2020
Notes: November/December 2020
January/February 2020
Last October, the Washington Post carried an article about Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating and the late Don Backe, who founded the organization after he was gravely injured in an auto accident. Devoted to providing sailing opportunities for disabled people, Don’s creation, now 30 years old, is enjoying spectacular success.
Art Nassau reports that his life “revolves around family, physical activity, and …working on a committee to resettle a refugee family…who’s sponsored by our synagogue and several churches.” Art enjoys “winters in Fort Myers where I manage a building I own through the magic of the internet.”
From Ed Masters: “I spent my 85th birthday hiking to the top of a 2,200 foot peak overlooking my home in the Taconic Range between New York and Massachusetts. I’m looking forward to doing it again on my 90th.” Ed and his wife live on a family farm in Copake Falls, NY where, “after years in the residential construction and renovation business, I care for the many 100-plus-year-old buildings on our property, serve as a NY State Parks Commissioner, chair several town committees, and volunteer for the Blue Hill Troupe (a New York City-based theater group). I’m also a long-time board member and past Board Chair of The Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, NY.” [The Blue Hill Troupe also played a role in Tom Rhum’s life. See below.]
In Memoriam: Richard B. Curran, Jr., died on July 8, 2019 in Houston from the complications of cancer. Winner of the White Prize in history and a varsity basketball and soccer player, after gaining a Yale law degree, Dick hied out for Texas where he practiced law with oil and gas companies, with which he held executive management positions. Sports remained a big part of his life. In service to others, he volunteered at many community and church service activities and for more than 20 years was a volunteer for Texas Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). Everyone who knew Dick experienced his infectious wit, prankster side, and smile. Don Roberts recalls that "Dick came to Yale in 1953 for pre-season football practice. After picking up his gear he went to the locker room but couldn’t find his name taped on a locker. He couldn’t even find it taped above a wooden peg. When he finally found 'Curran' taped above a nail, he switched to basketball." To Ray Lamontagne, Dick was "a special human being. Not a mean bone in his body. Though fighting cancer for several years and, for the last two years, in excruciating pain, his sense of humor prevailed to the end. The man was the epitome of love, humor, and compassion." Dick’s wife Carol having predeceased him, he is survived by four children: Richard, Anne White, Laura Turner, and Webb, his brother Edmund ("Mike") Curran ('59), their families, and many grandchildren. Contributions in his memory should go to Texas CASA at www.texascasa.org/ways-give.
In Memoriam: Thomas F. Ruhm died at his summer home in Quogue, Long Island, on July 25, 2019. After attending Harvard Law School, Tom spent most of his career as a venture capital attorney with Bessemer Securities. He carried his knowledge of finance into classrooms at St. John's and Concordia colleges and occasional articles for the Wall Street Journal and wrote a bi-monthly newsletter on Federal Reserve monetary policy. In his Bronxville, New York community, Tom served as director of coaching in the Eastchester (NY) Youth Soccer League. He was also an enthusiastic singer-performer with New York's Blue Hill Troupe, which produces musicals in the New York City area to benefit various charities. It is there that he and his wife Mimi met. His also served as head of the finance committee of Christ Church (Episcopal), Bronxville and then as the church’s senior warden. Lou DeLuca describes Tom as "a wonderful friend to all; you could feel his real enjoyment of the give and take in every encounter." In addition to his wife, Tom is survived by their son, Thomas, two sisters, and many others. He was predeceased by daughter Wendy.
JMB
March/April 2020
From Steve Ackerman: "My wife Jane and I have lived happily in Studio City, California after my stint in the Marine Corps and in Honolulu for 11 years. I'm still active in our company, VerityPoint LLC, a boutique employee/executive benefits firm focusing on large organizations. For 29 years I've published a newsletter, The Readers Exchange (book reviews and such features as word and phrase origins, vocabulary, and pronunciation). Yes, I know, the idea of reading and writing book reviews is hardly expected from a football player and a graduate of the Yale School of Engineering!?"
John Snider writes that after retiring from law practice, he continues as a Muskegon, Michigan, county commissioner and still enjoys being outside in all seasons "Here on the shore of Lake Michigan, America's other west coast."
Along the same line of community contributions, Gar Heller reports that he has just completed his 51st year of elective service in Westport, Connecticut, and was re-elected for another 4 years on the Board of Assessment Appeals.
In Memoriam: John L. Pallas, Jr. died of unstated causes on November 23, 2018, presumably in New Canaan, Connecticut. After two years at Connecticut State Technical Institute (now Capital Community College) and almost two years of Air Force service, John entered Yale with '58 but advanced to '57 soon after. An electrical engineering major and pilot, he helped found the Yale Aviation Club. Later, he was a systems engineer with ATT. John is survived by his wife Jennifer and their two daughters and two sons as well as eighteen grandchildren and a great grandson.
JMB
May/June 2020
Alan McGowan writes that his career has taken him from engineering to high school science teaching, then to heading an interdisciplinary environmental science program at Washington University. Subsequently, he was president of the Scientists' Institute for Public Information, a bridge between scientists and journalists, then founded and ran the Gene Media Forum. Now, after heading The New School’s science and environmental science programs, he teaches as an adjunct in the latter.
A note from Arthur (Mickey) Wertheim carries news that he’s added to his three-volume biography of W.C. Fields a fourth book, this one on Fields’s silent films: The Silent Movies of W. C. Fields: How They Created the Basis for his Fame in Sound Films. Norwood Hill, another ‘57 author, has written Blood and Betrayal: The Untold History by Norwood Oakley Hill MD, the history, available as an ebook and soon in print, of a medical family caught up in the AIDS and hepatitis C crises in blood banking and the betrayal of patients by medical officials entrusted with their care.
Even on deeply sad occasions, classmates renew friendships while mourning the loss of one of their own. That occurred in late February when ‘57ers Chittenden, M. Clark, P. Cooke, Correll, Eaton, Gimmler, Gignoux, Glass, Hockstader, Pillsbury, Towell, Weitz, Wendt, and yrs. truly gathered in Washington to recall the life and contributions of Steve Hopkins.
In Memoriam: John W. Somerville died on June 14, 2019, in Omao, Hawaii, the state where he'd long lived and worked as a tennis pro. At Yale, John played on the varsity soccer and tennis teams, sang with the Glee Club and Whiffs, and was a member of Skull and Bones. After college, he served in the Army, then, after moving to Hawaii, coached at the 'Iolani School. By the time of our 25th reunion, he was associated with the Waialawe Country Club, he and his wife Harriet both nationally ranked tennis players. John was also the founder of John W. Somerville Tennis Services. Ed Meyer says that he also practiced law. Pete Robertson recalls John, as do many others, as "affable and friendly.” He is survived by sons Henry and James, daughters Hannah Sirois and Betsy Purpura, and other family members.
In Memoriam: Patrick A. Carey III died on September 4, 2019, in his native city, Spartanburg, South Carolina, of unstated causes. After gaining a B.S. in industrial administration, Pat spent some time with Reliance Electric. Then, after driving his family firm's trucks, he assumed the presidency, then became owner, of Carey Moving & Storage. Upon retiring, he’d increased the company’s size to four locations and become a figure in national professional circles, including service as president of the Movers Association, director of the National Moving and Storage Association, and member of the Board of Directors of Allied Van Lines, where he helped prevent the firm from falling victim to a leveraged buyout. He was also deeply involved in Spartanburg civic and association life. He and his wife Mae spent much time at Kiawah Beach in what he called their "dream house." Jeff Freeman recalls Pat as always "'Southern' gentlemanly and friendly." In addition to his wife, he is survived by their children, grandchildren, and others. He was predeceased by a daughter, Jennifer Lynn Carey. Donations in his memory should go to the First Presbyterian Church Purnell Fund, 393 East Main Street, Spartanburg, SC 29302; Mobile Meals Service, PO Box 461, Spartanburg, SC 29304; or the Spartanburg Humane Society, 150 Dexter Road, Spartanburg, SC 29303.
In Memoriam: We lost Richard W. Jackson, Jr., to the complications of multiple myeloma on October 2, 2019. He died in Towson, Maryland. After Yale, U.S. Army service, and an unsatisfying stint as a PhD candidate in English at Columbia, Dick helped produce an off-Broadway play. When it closed after a short run, he turned to publishing, starting with work in the juvenile book divisions of Doubleday and Macmillan. Subsequently, he co-founded Bradbury Press, developed his own imprints, and worked within other publishing firms. His best known author being Judy Blume, he left a lasting mark on young people’s literature. The writers whose works he edited and published reoriented literature for young readers toward realistic fiction that included race, sex, physical violence, and adolescent confusion. His authors claimed 16 Newbery awards, five Caldecott citations, one Edgar award, and one National Book Award, which made him one of the most historically influential editors in his field. In retirement, Dick turned back to writing—not surprisingly, to children’s books, including Have a Look, Says Book and In Plain Sight. Others are forthcoming posthumously. He is survived by his wife Nancy and their son Adam and daughter Elizabeth Albert. He was predeceased by son Samuel.
In Memoriam: Bruce P. Arneill died on October 31, 2019 in Branford, Connecticut. An architecture major, Bruce, writes roommate Buz Brenton, was "singular among us, for he knew he wanted to be an architect while the rest of us dithered." After gaining a Yale MA in architecture in 1961, he pursued his profession with unwavering energy and became internationally celebrated after co-founding in 1980 the firm of Stecker LaBau Arneill McManus--usually known as SLAM--of which he eventually became chairman. Bruce's specialty was the design of hospitals and medical centers. He was particularly proud of the firm’s collaborative approach to architecture. Often teaching in Yale's school of architecture, he lectured widely on the design of healthcare institutions. His loyalty to Yale may have derived from the fact that his ancestor, Noah Porter, was the Yale’s president. Bruce possessed a keen interest also in New Haven, whose welfare he viewed as dependent on Yale's commitment to it. An avid skier and sailor who spent time in Harbour Island, Bahamas, and Klosters, Switzerland, Bruce is survived by his wife Bonnie Sue, children Scott, Wendy, Allison, Blair, and Porter, and grandchildren.
JMB
July/August 2020
A classmate resurrected! Our Henry Chisholm was said to be deceased in an In Memoriam listing in this magazine a few months ago. It turns out that the decedent was a similarly-named member of the Class of 1949. Consequently—may the gods be praised!—our Henry has returned officially to life. He writes in the spirit this deserves, "I was assumed deceased one other time in my life, and I am sure over the years many wished I would drop dead."
Jack Hughes notes what many have spotted—the frequent appearances in interviews and newspaper pieces during our viral crisis of one of the nation’s leading infectious disease specialists, Bill Schaffner. Reporting from Hartford, Lew Rabinovitz writes that since graduating from Harvard Law School in 1960, he’s practiced law, served on several non-profits’ boards, and, most importantly, is "a member of a classic blended family with 5 children and 14 grandchildren."
In Memoriam: We lost Carl S. Myrus on December 25, 2019 to the complications of dementia. A collegiate architecture major, Carl remained at Yale to secure an MArch, then practiced architecture professionally while teaching at Syracuse University’s architecture school and serving as principal architect with many firms, including the Hillier Group and Ellerbe Becket. Carl was noted for his adaptation of buildings for people with disabilities. He also played a major role in saving Frederic Edwin Church's celebrated house "Olana." But he was best known to us as a singer in the freshman and Yale glee clubs, Battell Chapel Choir, the Spizzwinks(?), and (as Pitchpipe) the Whiffepoofs. Jeff Freeman describes Carl, as "droll, quick-witted, persuasive, friendly, and good-humored." Reid White recalls Carl's "solid, pitch-perfect 2nd-tenor voice and great delivery. Just listen to his rendition of Crusin’Around on the ’57 Whiff record." Predeceased by son Gus, Carl is survived by his wife Eduarda Bossers, daughter Amanda Nestor, son Whitney, and first wife Shirley White Myrus. Donations in his memory should go to the East Area YMCA, 200 Towne Drive, Fayetteville, NY 13066.
In Memoriam: John N. Curlett, Jr., died, presumably in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, on January 10, 2020, his death due to the complications of Alzheimer's disease. After 1957, Jack worked for 22 years with McCormick and Co., eventually rising to senior vice president and general manager of the company's food service division. During those years, he became chairman of the board of the Kennedy Krieger Institute, which works to improve the lives of children and young adults with developmental disabilities. He was also a member of the board of trustees of Goucher College and, a great lover of food, a founding board member of the Culinary Institute of America. In 1983, Jack moved to Winston-Salem to be President of XPRESS Corporation, where he worked until 2008. There, he served on the boards of the city’s Habitat for Humanity, Children's Chorus, and Giannini Board, which supports the North Carolina School of the Arts. To all who knew him, Jack was a civic-minded, sunny-natured bon-vivant. To Reid White, "the Curly Bird was easily one of the most engaging, kind, friendly, genuine human beings one could ever know, as well as being a hilariously funny fellow." He is survived by his wife Anne, daughters Cathy Parsells and Lisa Curlett, step-children Winnie Simmons and Nat Taylor, and others. Donations in his memory should go to Winston-Salem Habitat for Humanity or Winston-Salem Children's Chorus.
In Memoriam: Tom Quirk and Tony Converse notified us that William R. Bogert III died in his Manhattan home on January 12, 2020, of unstated causes. A college actor, Bill pursued a career in stage, television, and film. In college, roommate Brian Walsh recalls, Bill "was a terrific song and dance man. He and Rex Robbins would bring down the house in Saybrook’s big weekend musicals." Many will recall his appearances in such television series as "M*A*S*H," "Law and Order," "The Gilmore Girls," "Melrose Place," "The Wonder Years," "Matlock," "Hill Street Blues," "Fantasy Island," "The Incredible Hulk," and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." He played opposite Warren Beatty in "Heaven Can Wait," held parts in many other well-known films, and acted with the touring company of "A Man for All Seasons" and "Play it Again Sam." A life-long Republican, Bill widely recalled for his role in the striking 1964 prime-time televised political advertisement, reprised in 2016, "Confessions of a Republican," where his plea for Lyndon Johnson's election was sincere. Brian writes that Bill was "one of the most entertaining guys I ever knew, always 'on', always performing. Delightfully old-fashioned, he never owned or used a computer. A marvelous clown, a gifted actor, an excellent mimic, and great fun as a friend." Bill was predeceased by his wife Eren Ozker. His sole survivors are her sisters.
In Memoriam: James M. Mikusky died on January 11, 2020, of unstated causes, presumably in or near Trumbull, Connecticut. Jim arrived at Yale after Marine Corps service during and after the Korean War. An electrical engineering major, he spent his career in that field at Sikorsky Aircraft, Norden Systems, Lear Siegler, and Teledyne Systems. Referring to himself in our 35th reunion book as a proud Yale man, Jim wrote that he showed his collegiate loyalty by sporting a California vanity plate that read "Yale '57." His survivors include his four daughters Susan Marie O'Connor, Nancy Lynn Salvatore, Judith Ann Mikusky, and Cathleen Alice Lovens, their families, and many grandchildren.
JMB
September/October 2020
I break my space-saving rule against reports of non-classmates to convey news from Jim Herlan and Sam Chauncey of the publication of Tom Perkins's daughter Ann Perkins's book, Yale Needs Women: How the First Group of Girls Rewrote the Rules of an Ivy League Giant.
I salute and hugely thank Jim Ziegler for his rescue and management of the class website over the past three years. To secure its future, its administration has been handed off to a firm that oversees other class websites.
Jim Crooks, emeritus member of the University of North Florida's history department, which he founded in 1972, is preparing a history of Jacksonville that will emphasize the city's African American community. Jim writes of his long commitment to provide "first generation college students, half ours fitting that category, with a decent education and opportunities." Involved also in community affairs, Reed Taylor writes of helping organize an early June protest by Buffalo's three Abrahamic faiths against police brutality, followed next day by the ugly scene of police knocking backward to the ground a pacifist dissenter seen in a widely distributed video clip. That man was Reed's neighbor.
From covid-battered Houston comes word from retired pathologist/immunologist Roger Rossen that, still "swimming a mile or more at the sedate speed of 2 mph" and desirous of keeping itthat way, "I don't look into patients' nasal cavities and down their throats these days" but instead "leave behind in my clinics better men than I."
In Memoriam: Emile L. Berlet III died in Tampa, Florida, on January 31, 2020 of unstated causes. After Yale, Jack gained an M.D. degree from New York Medical College. Then, after medical residency in New York and Army surgeon's service in Japan during the Vietnam War, he practiced urology in Westwood, New Jersey. By his retirement, he'd become a national champion breeder of American Brittanys. This earned him the presidency of the Ramapo Kennel Club. Jack is survived by his wife Arlene, sons Anthony and Matthew, daughters Pamela Dungan and Christina Kern, and their families. Donations in his memory should go to americanbrittanyrescue.org.
In Memoriam: On February 16, 2020, we lost class stalwart Stephen A. Hopkins to the complications of lung cancer. After college, Steve obtained an MBA from NYU and an LLB from Columbia. Starting as an attorney with Donovan, Leisure, Newton & Irvine, he spent 1960s summers in the South as an ACLU volunteer lawyer on prison-release and voter-registration cases, one of them requiring argument before the Supreme Court. In 1967, he became assistant counsel to Governor Nelson Rockefeller before heading New York State's Washington office. Returning to New York City, in 1973 Steve joined Citibank, where he served for 25 years as Director of Government Relations, the last ten back in Washington. In the capital, he was deeply involved, usually through board membership, in the Shakespeare Theatre Company, Wesley Theological Seminary, the NPR Foundation, and Georgetown Presbyterian Church. To all, he brought to bear his characteristic prudence, balanced judgment, and good cheer. In the last part of his life, he stood out for his composure and sheer grit in the face of the injury to his lower limbs from an infection he'd contracted. With an ever-ready smile and a "let's move forward" attitude, Steve set an example to everyone by resuming as best he could his former life. That included leadership of the class's New York theater weekends and service as Class Secretary and Treasurer. As close friend Tom Chittenden writes, Steve loved the members of his family "completely and without reservation" and was a man of "tremendous discipline." The model of committed citizenship and indomitability for everyone who knew him, in addition to Judy, his wife of 59 years, Steve is survived by their three children-Elizabeth (Kiki), Stephen Jr., and Sarah, as well as grandchildren and others. Gifts in his memory should go to the Keene Valley Library, PO Box 1796 Rt. 73, Keene Valley, NY 12943.
In Memoriam: Frank Chi-Wen Lin died of heart failure and severe anemia on March 12, 2020, presumably in Salisbury, Maryland. Frank was born into a merchant family in Shanghai, his pre-collegiate education taking place in Hong Kong. After a year of study at Grinnell College, he joined '57, majored in civil engineering, then gained a Yale Ph.D. in physics. Frank spent much of his professional career as professor of computer science at the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore, after which he taught at Thailand's leading research institution, Chulalongkorn University. His principal research interest was artificial intelligence, a subject on which he contributed many papers. Remarkably productive until close to his death, Frank always evinced a deep pride in his Yale education. He's survived by his second wife, Helen Baldado, daughters Ulrika Lin and Sigrid Lin, of Goteborg, Sweden, a sister and brother, and grandchildren.
In Memoriam: Louis Mark Franzoni died on March 21, 2020, presumably in or near his home in Sandy Springs, Georgia, after a short struggle with cancer. Lou-his nickname can now only be guessed-was born in Locarno, Switzerland in 1932 and moved to New York City in 1934. He's known to have served in the Army before entering Yale at a date unknown. He and his wife Janet moved to Dunwoody, Georgia, in 1972. He spent 30 years in the insurance business, then became an award-winning high school science teacher. In our 35th reunion book, Lou recommended a switch to teaching after retirement as a "source of personal fulfillment." "Mingling with the youth of America," he wrote, "keeps me attuned to major social issues, helping my perspective shift from a fifties mentality to a nineties world-view, and hopefully blending the best of both worlds." Lou is survived by his wife, their three daughters Linda Serra, Lisa Stilwell, Brenda Padgett, their two sons Louis Jr. and Christopher, as well as many grandchildren and great grandchildren.
JMB
November/December 2020
After having read Homer, Shakespeare, Austin, Hemingway, et al., I've finally had a go at their canonical peer, Dink Stover at Yale. I feel like Oscar Wilde after he'd finished Dickens's Old Curiosity Shop: "One must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without dissolving into tears of laughter." Try Dink yourselves and see.
From Elliott Schiffman come inspiring light-spirited words. Suffering from macular degeneration but still reading digitally, he writes that "loss of vision isn't so bad. I tell my wife that she has no wrinkles. Activities are limited to swimming five hundred yards a day. I find that life is incredibly good." From Vern Loucks arrives news of his remarriage in June to Bunny Hoffman, widow of Carl Hoffman. Acquainted since 1955, they're now living in Sewickly, Pennsylvania.
Jim Seymour reports from Hong Kong that, writing about two 1976 international human rights covenants, he's focused on China's mistranslation and misuse of them and on whether their principle of self-determination pertain to Taiwan. Calling Hong Kong's new national security law an "abomination," once there's an anti-Covid vaccine he and husband Kangsu Lee are "off to NY." Vic Goodman's also going strong. He's just accepted a 4-year term on the Ohio Board of Pharmacy. He now shares responsibility for, yes, regulating cannabis dispensaries. What will classmates get into next?
Fuller obituaries are found on the class website at www.Yale57.org.
In Memoriam: Walter S. Clarke died in Lutz, Florida, on November 24, 2019. Joining the Foreign Service in 1958, Walt studied at the Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins and at Northwestern. He then served as state Department Desk Officer for two areas of the world, as well as Consul, Chief of Political Section, Chargé d'Affaires, and Deputy Chief of Mission at American embassies in Latin American, Africa, and Spain. After his retirement, Walt taught at the Army and Naval War Colleges and the Army's Peacekeeping Institute. He also served as senior advisor to the Global Center for Disaster Assistance and Humanitarian Action of the University of South Florida and was a consultant to many U.S. and NATO military exercises. A serious man, he was never without a wry and ready sense of humor. He's survived by his wife Chantal, four children, and others.
In Memoriam: Alexis J. Zervanos died of unstated causes in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on April 11, 2020. After college, Alex gained a Harvard M.A. in Byzantine history, studied at Oxford, and was completing his PhD at Wisconsin while teaching at the University of California, Riverside when, in 1968, he became disabled. Returning to his native Reading, Pennsylvania, he spent the remainder of his life among relatives and friends in good health and surrounded by books. Alex is survived by his brother Nikita Zervanos and other family members. Contributions to his memory may be made to Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 64 Hershey Ave., Lancaster, PA 17603.
In Memoriam: On May 27, 2020, we lost Laurence D. Kramer, the most historically significant member of the Class of 1957, to pneumonia. After college (where he was known as Dave), this shy and self-described "dreamer" served in the U.S Army. By then calling himself Larry, he spent much of the 1960s in London in production work for Columbia Pictures on "Dr. Strangelove" and "Lawrence of Arabia." He then bought the film rights to a screen version of D. H. Lawrence's Women in Love (for which Glenda Jackson won a best actress Oscar). Returning to the U.S., he became the force de nature by which Americans knew him. His 1978 roman á clef Faggots gained him notoriety in the gay community. Three years later, recognizing before most others the gravity of the manifestation of Kaposi's sarcoma among gay men, he founded the Gay Men's Health Crisis and, later, the more radical Act Up. His controversial 1983 essay, "1,112 and Counting," attacked gay men for taking so little heed of the disease. In 1985 came his literary masterpiece, the stage drama "The Normal Heart," an unsparing autobiographical portrayal of himself, his brother Arthur '49, and others as they faced the onset of the AIDS crisis. Learning in 1988 that he was HIV positive, Larry managed to control that threat only to learn of an equally serious hepatitis B infection. An operation arranged by '57er Rob Corry saved his life. In 2013 he married his long-time partner David Webster, then worked until his death on a sprawling two-volume novel, The American People. Those who knew Larry often encountered the sweet, romantic, conservative man that at core he was. When he excoriated others for unprotected sex, he spoke of the values of love, commitment, and stable marriage-gay as well as straight. What the public saw was Larry the dramatist, the actor, a man playing what he thought was a necessary part. As Bud Trillin says, Larry assumed the role of a flaming, shouting radical "as a matter of policy." Among his targets was Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, whom Larry once called "an incompetent idiot" and "our chief murderer." Fauci, eventually a friend, conceded later that Larry had a profound, enduring effect on how medical researchers and practitioners dealt with the AIDS virus and its sufferers. "In American medicine, there are two eras, before Larry and after Larry. There is no question in my mind that Larry helped change medicine in this country." Larry's papers eventually went to Yale. In 2015, the university conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. Its citation called "The Normal Heart" "among the most significant cultural forces of the last century" and praised its recipient for "your courage and tenacity in speaking out and acting up."
JMB
Site design: Christopher Bates
Maintenance: DowneastHost
| |
