The University of Chicago Magazine

David Currie, AB’57, the Edward H. Levi distinguished service professor of law, died October 15 in Chicago. He was 71. After clerking for Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter in 1961, Currie joined the Law School faculty in 1962. A constitutional-law and U.S.-history scholar, he won the Graduating Students’Award for teaching four times, the last in 2006. Currie also headed Hyde Park’s Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company from 1981 to 1994, directing 20 productions and playing the lead in 13. Survivors include his wife Barbara Flynn Currie, U-High’58, AB’68, AM’73; daughter Margaret Rose Currie, U-High’81; son Stephen Currie, U-High’78; a sister; and four grandchildren.

Sidney Davidson, the Arthur Young distinguished service professor emeritus of accounting, died September 15 in Chicago. He was 88. In 1958, four years after joining Chicago’s faculty, Davidson became director of the GSB’s Institute of Professional Accounting and served as dean of the GSB from 1969 to 1974. The author of 15 books, he applied economic principles to the practice of accounting and served as a standard setter on the Accounting Principles Board (now the Financial Accounting Standards Board); a consultant for the Treasury Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission, Davidson was also president of the American Accounting Association, vice chair of the Financial Accounting Foundation, vice president of the American Institute of CPAs, and a member of the Accounting Hall of Fame. Retiring in 1999, he continued to teach until 2004. Davidson is survived by his wife Freda Davidson, AM’66; daughter Victoria Davidson Goldwyn, U-High X’73; a son; a brother; a sister; five grandchildren, including David Goldwyn, U-High’02, and Samantha Goldwyn, U-High’05; and a great-grandson.

Stanley Gwynn, X’49, associate director of the University of Chicago Libraries, died October 28 in Chicago. He was 94. Joining the libraries in 1949, Gwynn helped plan the Regenstein Library and oversaw the acquisition of the John Crerar collection; he retired in 1974 as associate director. A longtime Quadrangle Club member, he often wrote lines and lyrics for the Faculty Revels. He also belonged to the Stochastics, the Midway Playreaders, and the Society of the Fifth Line. He is survived by his wife Dorothy; daughter Elizabeth G. Ray, X’59; two grandchildren, including Dale Stephanie Ray, AB’85; and two great-grandchildren.

Nancy Pearce Helmbold, a professor emerita of classics, died October 27 in Chicago. She was 88. In the 1940s Helmbold translated Spanish-language telephone calls for the FBI and Japanese documents for the navy, first in Washington, DC, and later in Tokyo. Joining Chicago’s faculty in 1963, she focused on Ciceronian-age literature and taught Latin to students at all skill levels. A member of the American Philological Association and dean of students in the humanities (1970–73), Helmbold won the Burlington-Northern Faculty Achievement Award for graduate teaching; she continued to teach at Chicago for a decade after her 1989 retirement. Survivors include daughter Alexandra Balfour Genetti, U-High’74; a sister; and three grandchildren.

Peter Jansen, a Germanic-studies professor emeritus, died September 22 in Chicago. He was 72. A native of Germany, Jansen joined Chicago in 1968 after teaching at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Indiana University. Focusing on 18th-, 19th-, and 20th-century German drama and literature, particularly Heinrich von Kleist and Thomas Bernhard, he translated several works and taught translation theory and practice. Jansen retired in 1992 but continued to translate; he also helped found the Friends of the Goethe-Institut Chicago. He is survived by his wife Laurie Bederow, AM’75.

1930s

Arthur I. Grossman, AB’35, JD’37, a tax attorney, died September 24 in Sun City, AZ. He was 93. A WW II veteran, Grossman became a partner with D’Ancona, Pflaum, Wyatt, and Riskind. He also led the tax committee of the Chicago Bar Association’s board of governors. Survivors include his wife Elaine Grossman, SB’45, and a son.

Dugald S. McDougall, AB’35, JD’37, a Chicago patent attorney, died September 15 in Haines City, FL. He was 91. Joining the navy in 1942, McDougall studied radar, then classified technology, and worked for the Naval Research Laboratory. Moving to Chicago in 1948, he became a senior partner in McDougall, Hersh, and Scott; joined the American College of Trial Lawyers; and argued before the Supreme Court. He is survived by his wife Judith; four sons, including Walter A. McDougall, AM’71, PhD’74; 13 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Muriel Novella Stanek, AB’36, AM’41, PhD’61, an author and academic administrator, died July 26, 2005, in Chicago. She was 89. The first Chicago Board of Education diversity director, Stanek wrote numerous children’s books. She also headed the city’s largest African American elementary school, saving it from arson during the riots following Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. Survivors include two nephews: John R. Stanek, AB’64, and Robert G. Stanek, AB’67, MBA’71.

Robert O. Anderson, U-High’35, AB’39, an oil executive, died December 2 in Roswell, NM. He was 90. Moving to New Mexico in 1941, Anderson bought and expanded several oil refineries, including Atlantic Refining. In 1966, after supervising the merger of Atlantic Refining and Ritchfield, he became CEO of Atlantic Richfield Company, or Arco, for 17 years and served as its board chair for 21 years. During his tenure, Arco discovered the largest oil field in North America’s history. In 1986 he left Arco to found Hondo Oil & Gas Company, where he was chair and CEO until early 1994. He then joined the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology as distinguished professor of petroleum engineering. A philanthropist, Anderson helped rescue both Harper’s magazine and the London Observer at moments of near-bankruptcy. He was a life trustee of the University, the California Institute of Technology, and London’s International Institute for Environmental Development. The University of New Mexico’s Anderson School of Management was named in his honor. Survivors include his wife Barbara Phelps Anderson, X’38; five daughters; and two sons.

1940s

William K. Stevens, U-High’34, AM’40, an estate attorney, died October 28 in Burr Ridge, IL. He was 90. A WW II navy veteran, Stevens was vice president of the First National Bank of Chicago’s trust department from 1948 to 1974. He then joined McDermott Will & Emery, where he remained until 1985, when he became a partner in a Naples, FL, law firm, Myers, Krause & Stevens (now part of Fowler White Boggs Banker). Survivors include his wife Anna; three daughters, including Anne S. Fishman, AM’70; son William H. Stevens, AM’76; brother John P. Stevens, U-High’37, AB’41; and five grandchildren.

Morris Allen, MBA’42, a foreign-service officer, died September 12 in Washington, DC. He was 90. He is survived by his wife Ruth; two daughters; a brother; a sister; four grandchildren, including Phillip Torres, MBA’01; and two great-grandchildren.

Allyn J. Franke, AB’41, LLB’42, a lawyer, died November 11 in Deerfield, IL. He was 88. Joining Hinshaw & Culbertson in 1942, Franke led the legal and financial operations to create hundreds of consolidated school districts across Illinois. He retired in 2006. Survivors include a daughter, three sons, a brother, and seven grandchildren.

Vivian Georges Cardwell, AB’42, MBA’43, an academic administrator, died October 15 in Chicago. She was 86. After a 23-year career with the University of Illinois at Chicago, Cardwell retired as assistant dean in UIC’s college of engineering. She also founded the choirs at Saints Peter and Paul Greek Orthodox Church in Glenview, IL, directing them for more than 25 years. Survivors include a daughter, a son, and two grandchildren.

Stuart P. Lloyd, SB’43, a physicist, died October 20 in Rahway, NJ. He was 84. A member of the Manhattan Project, Lloyd was a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies before joining Bell Telephone Laboratories’math department. His research, in particular work now known as Lloyd’s Theorem or Lloyd’s Algorithm, helped improve communication with space probes, increase credit-card security, and advance computer graphics. Survivors include his wife Ruth, three daughters, two sons, and nine grandchildren.

Raymond E. Robertson, SB’43, MD’45, a psychiatrist, died October 3 in La Grange, IL. He was 85. After serving in the Army Medical Corps, Robertson directed the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Institute for Juvenile Research and later the Illinois Department of Mental Health. Operating a private practice from 1953 until 2006, he was also clinical director of the Riveredge Hospital (Forest Park, IL) adolescent unit, president of the medical staff, and a member of the board; he also served as a clinical professor at the Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine. In 1995 he won the American Psychiatric Association’s Nancy Roeske Certificate of Excellence. Survivors include his wife Mary B. Robertson, SB’45; a daughter; a son; and four grandchildren.

Oswald Hall, PhD’44, a sociologist, died August 31 in Saskatchewan. He was 99. After teaching at Brown University and later McGill University, where he was department chair, Hall joined the University of Toronto in 1956. An expert on vocations, particularly in medicine, he served on the Royal Commission on Health Services and the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism; he was also a member of the Royal Society of Canada. Survivors include a daughter, a son, a sister, and a granddaughter.

Marion Jane Salmon, U-High’40, AB’44, a community volunteer, died October 18 in Hinsdale, IL. She was 85. After a stint at Price Waterhouse, Salmon taught kindergarten and served as curriculum coordinator for her local school district. She also served on the local school board. Survivors include a daughter; brother Hillier L. Baker, U-High’40, SB’44, MD’46; four grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.

Nancy Elliot Surkin, U-High’42, PhB’44, a teacher and community volunteer, died October 3 in San Francisco. She was 80. Active with the local PTA, Surkin also volunteered with the National Council of Jewish Women and the Mount Zion Auxiliary. From 1965 until her 1991 retirement, she taught in the San Francisco Community Colleges system. Surkin is survived by two daughters and two grandchildren, including Ethan Stillman, U-High’03.

Hadassah Daniels, SB’45, a psychiatrist, died September 25 in Chestnut Hill, MA. She was 84. A member of the American Medical Association and the American Psychiatric Association, Daniels ran a private practice for 30 years. She also was an avid painter and entered many local competitions. Survivors include a daughter and a son.

Eliza Feld, PhB’45, JD’48, a lawyer and teacher, died March 23 in Philadelphia. She was 86. In 1952 Feld joined the Boston Legal Aid Society; she later moved to the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers. Publishing her only novel in 1971, she then taught creative writing at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education, where she remained for more than 30 years. Survivors include two daughters and two grandchildren.

Jane Lohrer Cates, PhD’46, a teacher, died October 27 in Chicago. She was 97. An Esquire magazine associate editor during WW II, she later taught history at the college and high-school levels. She was also a member of the American Association of University Women’s Naperville, IL, chapter. Survivors include a daughter and two grandchildren.

Herbert W. Siegal, AM’46, a teacher, died September 27 in San Antonio, TX. He was 89. During his 50-year career, Siegal taught at the San Antonio Independent School District, worked as a guidance counselor, and administered the GED. He also taught psychology at San Antonio College and worked at Keystone Academy. Siegal served 20 years in the Army Reserves. Survivors include his wife Isabel, a daughter, a son, and three grandchildren.

Carl E. Thorkelson, AB’47, an entrepreneur, died November 10 in Oak Brook, IL. He was 86. A WW II Army Air Force veteran, he cofounded Thornel Associates in 1955. Ten years later, he started the equipment company Interthor Inc., where he designed and sold the Thork-Lift, a heavy-lifting machine. Survivors include a daughter, a son, a sister, and a granddaughter.

James Abegglen, PhB’48, PhD’56, died May 2 in Tokyo. He was 81. A WW II Marine Corps veteran in the Pacific, Abegglen founded the Boston Consulting Group’s Tokyo office in 1967. He later launched his own firm, Asia Advisory Service, helping U.S. companies break into the Japanese market. Abegglen taught at Chicago, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Tokyo’s Sophia University; he became a Japanese citizen in 1997. Survivors include his wife Hiroko, two daughters, and grandson Nicolai B. Baecher, AB’03.

Jane A. Simmons, AB’48, a teacher and counselor, died October 28 in Park Ridge, IL. She was 78. After a short time as an elementary-school principal, Simmons joined Park Ridge’s Maine East High School in 1966 as a math teacher, later becoming a school counselor. She retired from Maine East in 1993, but continued to work as an independent college counselor in Wilmette, IL.

Richard Grossman, PhB’49, an advertising executive, died October 23 in Bronxville, NY. He was 81. A WW II Army Air Corps veteran, Grossman was executive vice president and creative director of Kallir, Philips, Ross Inc., specializing in pharmaceutical advertising. Survivors include his wife Eleanor, two daughters, and three grandchildren.

1950s

Walter Emmerich, U-High’45, PhB’51, PhD’56, a psychologist, died September 25 in Princeton, NJ. He was 78. After teaching at the University of Colorado and Purdue University, Emmerich joined the Educational Testing Service, where he developed ways to measure reasoning and the factors influencing occupational selection. An expert on children’s social and personality development, he also helped create the GRE Psychology Test. Emmerich was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Psychological Association, and the Association for Psychological Science. Survivors include his wife Billie, two sons, and three grandchildren.

Joseph Scherer, AM’48, PhD’51, an economist, died August 3 in Georgetown, ME. He was 89. A WW II army veteran who served in the Philippines, from 1955 to 1980 Scherer headed the government finance section of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. A member of the American Economic Association, he also taught at several universities, including Baruch College in New York City, where he was adjunct professor of economics for 17 years. Retiring to Maine in 1982, Scherer served on the finance committees of the Merriconeag School in Freeport, ME, and the Georgetown Democratic Society. Survivors include his wife Elizabeth, a daughter, a son, and three grandchildren.

Harold J. Seigle, MBA’51, an executive, died October 31 in Palm Beach, FL. He was 84. A WW II veteran, Seigle was president of the Head Ski Company, executive president of King-Seely Thermos, and president of the Sunmark Candy Company. In retirement he volunteered with Service Corps of Retired Executives and served on several local business boards. Survivors include his wife Rosemarie, four daughters, two sons, a sister, 10 grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.

Robert Lemon, DB’52, a minister, died October 15 in Berkeley, CA. He was 82. Ordained in 1948, Lemon served for 40 years in Illinois, West Virginia, and California; he also taught at Bethany College, University of the Pacific, and Pacific School of Religion. Lemon spoke at anti-war demonstrations, helped improve inner-city safety, volunteered at a convalescent center, and led the Oakland Parkinson’s Support Group for ten years. He chaired the regional commission on clergy training and care. Survivors include his wife Adelle, two daughters, two sons, five grandchildren, and a sister.

Duncan E. Govan, PhD’57, a surgeon, died September 28 in Portola Valley, CA. He was 84. Joining Stanford University’s urology department in 1961, Govan twice won the Henry Kaiser Foundation Award for his contributions to medical education and received the Alwin C. Rambar Award for patient care. The Rotary Foundation made him a Paul Harris Fellow for his help establishing a free health-care clinic. Survivors include his wife Paddy, two daughters, four sons, and 15 grandchildren.

Anthony F. Plothow III, X’57, a pharmacist, died October 8 in Indianapolis, IN. He was 75. After service in the Army Medical Corps, Plothow joined Pitman-Moore Pharmaceuticals in Chicago and later Dow Chemical Company. Survivors include his wife Pat, two daughters, two sons, 17 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

David Ish, X’59, a journalist, died October 9 in Pai, Thailand. After working at Playboy magazine, in advertising and marketing firms, and for community newspapers, Ish founded the New Fillmore, a San Francisco–area paper, in 1986. He sold the paper in 2006 and retired to Thailand, where he wrote poetry. Survivors include a son, a half-brother, and a half-sister.

1960s

Charlotte Snyder Sholod, AB’61, an art historian, died June 7 in New York City. She was 67. After a stint in the National Gallery of Art’s department of education, Sholod worked as a curator for the Dreyfuss/Glicenstein Foundation. In 2004 she published a monograph on sculptor Enrico (Henryk) Glicenstein (1870–1942). Survivors include her husband Barton and a sister.

Stephen J. Spiro, X’61, a computer programmer, died of liposarcoma October 3 in Metuchen, NJ. He was 68. In the late 1970s, Spiro went into computer programming, where he became an independent consultant and an expert in COBOL, a programming language. A member of the American National Standards Institute’s COBOL committee, Spiro retired in 2002. He then became the New Jersey organizer for the Catholic Peace Fellowship, leading delegations to New Jersey senators and representatives during January’s annual March for Life in Washington, DC, and supporting peace organizations such as Pax Christi. Survivors include a daughter, two sons, a brother, two sisters, and a grandson.

Richard Bushong, AB’65, a teacher, died of cancer October 3 in Chicago. He was 66. Bushong taught in various institutions, most recently at Kishwaukee College. Survivors include his wife Caroline, four daughters, a son, and five grandchildren.

Richard Leigh, AM’67, a writer, died of a heart condition November 21 in London. He was 64. Spending several years as a university lecturer in the United States and Canada, in 1982 Leigh published The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail. In 2006 he sued author Dan Brown for plagiarism, claiming that Brown used ideas from Holy Blood in his novel The Da Vinci Code. Leigh published his last book, Grey Magic, in 2007.

Earl L. Durham, AM’69, a community activist, died October 27 in Chicago. He was 83. After army service, Durham joined the SSA, where he taught organizational theory; in 1981 he moved to the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Jane Addams College of Social Work, retiring in 1999. He held leadership roles at St. Leonard’s Ministries, which works with men recently released from prison; Design for Change, which pushed to decentralize Chicago schools; the Edward W. Hazen Foundation; and most recently with groups fighting to slow the gentrification of Chicago’s South Side. Survivors include three sons, a brother, a sister, and two grandchildren.

1970s

Norman E. Gunderson, MBA’71, a civil servant, died October 30 in Reston, VA. He was 62. During his 35-year career with the federal government, Gunderson held posts at the United States Geological Survey and the Office of Management and Budget. Survivors include his wife Kathryn and a son.

Robert F. Southard, PhD’74, a historian, died November 6 in Chicago. He was 62. Since 1971 Southard taught history and Jewish studies at Earlham College, serving as the school’s associate academic dean from 2001 to 2006. Most recently, he taught an advanced research seminar for the Associated Colleges of the Midwest at Chicago’s Newberry Library. He is survived by his wife Edna Carter Southard, AM’73; two sons; and a brother.

Louise W. Stanek, PhD’74, a teacher and author, died July 30 in New York City. She was 76. After working as a United Airlines flight attendant and as global training director for Philip Morris, Stanek directed Marymount College’s women-in-management honors program. An expert on gifted children, she helped design Chicago Public Schools’program for gifted students, published guides to young-adult authors, taught at the New School, and served on the Millikin University board for many years.

Fred O. Lawson, AM’68, PhD’76, a teacher, died January 30 in Montreal, Quebec. He was 64. Joining North Central College in 1972, Lawson was an associate professor of political science and chaired the department until 1986. He later taught English in Spain and Montreal at the Centre de Consultation Linguistique. Survivors include a son and a sister.

1990s

Nancy A. Tomasek, AM’61, PhD’92, a French professor, died November 8 in Chicago. She was 73. A Fulbright fellow who studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, Tomasek had a 37-year academic career, joining the University of Illinois at Chicago’s French department in 1961 and retiring as assistant professor in 1998. She is survived by two brothers.