The University of Chicago Magazine

April 1997

DEATHS

FACULTY

Harold F. Gosnell, PhD'22, a former professor of political science, died January 8 at his Bethesda, MD, home. He was 100. On the Chicago faculty from 1922 to 1941, he left to join the federal Office of Price Administration and later held other government posts. From 1962 to 1972 he taught at American and Howard universities in Washington, DC. His 13 books include Negro Politicians: The Rise of Negro Politics in Chicago and Champion Campaigner: Franklin D. Roosevelt. He is survived by two sons and five grandchildren.

Paul C. Hodges, PhB'48, the founding chair of the radiology department, and a pioneer of radiology diagnostic devices and methods, died December 27 in Green Bay, WI. He was 103. As director of radiology at Beijing University Medical College, he was recruited in 1927 by the U of C to head its new radiology program. Hodges is perhaps best known as co-inventor of the phototimer, a device that improved the quality of diagnostic X rays while reducing the dose of radiation necessary. Emeritus since 1958, he remained active at the U of C and also organized a radiology-treatment program at the University of Taipei. Survivors include a son, a daughter, and 11 grandchildren.

Ruth House Webber, a professor emerita of romance languages & literatures, died January 13 at her home in Berkeley, CA. She was 78. A U of C faculty member from 1958 until retiring in 1981, she also taught at Roosevelt University and Oakland City College and in the Berkeley public schools.

Albert Wohlstetter, a professor emeritus of political science, died January 10 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 83. An influential scholar on strategic nuclear theory during the cold war, he was a senior policy analyst at the Rand Corporation (1951-63) and taught at the University of California before joining Chicago's faculty in 1965. He advised several presidents and the U.S. Congress. Survivors include his wife, Roberta, and a daughter.

STAFF

David H. Jacobsohn, PhB'48, SB'53, a mathematician and former head of the applied-mathematics division for Argonne, died September 6 in Hyde Park. He was 71. The logical-design specialist served as a senior computer engineer for the University's Institute for Computer Research (1958-61) before returning to Argonne. Survivors include his wife, Sandra; a daughter; and a son.

Maurice B. Mitchell, former president of Encyc-lopaedia Britannica, chancellor of the University of Denver, and president of the now defunct U of C Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions, died November 30 in Santa Barbara, CA. He was 81. A former manager of William Benton's Muzak Corporation, he presided over Britannica Films, chaired National Public Radio (1977-82), and cofounded Westview Press. Survivors include his wife, Linda; two sons; a daughter; and three grandchildren.

1920s

Josephine Ardrey McKinney, PhB'21, a leader in civic and cultural institutions in Kansas City, MO, died August 22 at age 97. Her affiliations included the boards of the Women's City Club, Kansas City Music Club, and the women's committee for the Conservatory of Music at the University of Missouri. Among survivors are two nephews.

John I. Brewer, SB'25, MD'29, PhD'36, a professor emeritus of medicine and former chair and chief of services of Northwestern Memorial Hospital's ob/gyn department, died January 15 in Boise, ID. He was 93. Editor emeritus of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, he also was president of the medical staff of Passavant Hospital. He is survived by a son and three grandchildren.

Felix F. Caruso, SB'25, died December 27 at his home in Hinsdale, IL. A star halfback with the Maroon team in the 1920s, he declined offers from the Chicago Bears and other teams and joined the family business, B. Caruso & Sons, a wholesale vegetable firm in South Water Market, where he worked until retiring in 1990. Survivors include two sons; a daughter; and 11 grandchildren, including Geoffrey Etherington III, JD'82.

Joseph Thomas, AM'26, of Jasper, IN, a professor emeritus of philosophy at Saint Meinrad College, died December 20 at age 98. Before joining the Saint Meinrad faculty in 1966, he spent 40 years as a Methodist minister in Evanston, IL, and two years as a philosophy professor at Transylvania University in Lexington, KY. He also translated two works by historian Emile Brehier, under whom he studied at the Sorbonne. He is survived by his wife, Mary.

Yolanda Simiz Johnson, PhB'27, a former manager for Boeing, died in November at age 88. She was the first woman to hold such a post in the corporation. After retirement she was active in cultural and social-service organizations in Seattle. Survivors include two sons and four grandchildren.

Jerome H. Debs, PhB'28, retired president of Chicago Metallic Manufacturing, died November 14 in San Francisco. He was 89. Under his leadership, the company became a top producer of tin and aluminum housewares with the brand name BakeKing. Survivors include his wife, Ruth Kay Debs, PhB'32; a daughter; two sons, including Robert J. Debs, MD'77; a sister, Betty Debs Sobel, AB'42; and seven grandchildren.

Clyde L. Korman, LLB'29, a lawyer and insurance executive, died January 18 in Dana Point, CA. He was 91. The former CEO of Highway Mutual Insurance moved from Chicago to California in 1991. Survivors include two daughters, a sister, and three grandchildren.

1930s

Romeo R. Legault, PhD'30, a retired professor of agricultural chemistry, died December 22 at age 91. After 10 years in the Department of Agriculture's Western Regional Laboratories, he headed the food-technology department at the University of Illinois and, from 1953 to 1971, taught chemistry and chaired the agricultural-chemistry department at Washington State University. Survivors include a son, two daughters, and nine grandchildren.

Robert S. Friend, JD'31, a retired lawyer and active member of the Sons of the American Revolution, died December 21 at age 90. The WWII veteran practiced law in Chicago for some 50 years, retiring as assistant general counsel of North American Life Insurance. His wife, Ilse, survives him.

Harold Durchslag, PhB'32, JD'34, a retired attorney in Chicago, died December 23 at age 85. The U.S. Army veteran worked as a lawyer in state government before going into private practice with his brother Milton, who survives him.

George W. Mitchell, X'33, a former vice-chair of the Federal Reserve Board, died January 25. The Arlington, VA, resident was 92. Appointed a governor of the Federal Reserve in 1961, he soon began promoting the now-commonplace electronic banking system. He retired in 1976. Survivors include his wife, Mary; a son; three daughters; and 21 grandchildren.

John H. Abrahams, PhB'35, a retired business and civic leader in Topeka, KS, died December 5 at age 83. The WWII veteran served as president and chair of Security Benefit Life Insurance, which he joined in 1935. Survivors include his wife, Julia; a daughter; and four grandsons.

John E. Moseley, MD'37, an associate professor emeritus of radiology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine and former medical director of the Washington Heights Medical Group, died November 22 in New York City. He was 87. He researched sickle-cell anemia and other blood disorders. His wife, Louise; a daughter; and two sisters survive him.

Macha L. Rosenthal, AB'37, AM'38, a professor emeritus of English at New York University, died July 21. He was 77. A poet and critic of 20th-century poetry, he taught at NYU from 1961 until 1987; wrote and edited numerous books and anthologies; translated The Adventures of Pinocchio; and for several years was poetry editor of The Nation. He is survived by his wife, Victoria Himmelstein Rosenthal, AB'39, AM'45; a son, Alan B. Rosenthal, AB'72; and four grandchildren.

Laurence L. Sloss, PhB'37, a professor emeritus of geological sciences at Northwestern, died November 2 at age 83. An expert in sedimentary tectonics, he joined the Northwestern faculty in 1947 and retired in 1981. He is survived by two sons, including Peter W. Sloss, SM'66, and six grandchildren.

Robert M. Eckhouse, AB'38, a member of the Charter Life Underwriters Association, died November 1, 1995. He was 78. The Glencoe, IL, resident volunteered for local social-service agencies and his synagogue. Survivors include his wife, Ruth; a daughter; a son; two sisters, Elizabeth Eckhouse Rosenthal, SB'38, and Margery Eckhouse Blumberg, AB'42; two stepbrothers, David L. Blumberg, AB'47, MBA'50, and James A. Blumberg, PhB'43, JD'52; and three grandchildren.

Harold H. Webber, AB'38, a retired executive with Lever Brothers, died November 17 in Stuart, FL. In the early 1950s he served on the committee that established the U of C's Business School Alumni Council, which he later chaired. He is survived by his wife, Shirley Irish Webber, AB'38; three children; and seven grandchildren.

Jack R. Green, AB'39, MBA'40, an advertising executive, died May 6 in Albany, NY. He was 77. The WWII veteran worked for Leo Burnett and J. Walter Thompson before moving in the mid-1960s to Papert Koenig and Lois, where he became a vice president and, later, one of four partners who bought the firm. He is survived by two sons, two sisters, and three grandchildren.

Walter M. Lillie, MBA'39, a certified public accountant, died November 30 in Highland Park, IL. He was 86. Until his retirement in 1982, he was an assistant controller of the Presbyterian Home. He is survived by his wife, Frances; two sons; and three granddaughters.

1940s

Jyotirmoyee Sarma, AB'41, AM'42, PhD'46, a professor of sociology, died July 16 at her home in Calcutta, India. She was 73. She held posts at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, Utkal University, and the Indian Museum at Calcutta, among others. Survivors include a brother.

Ali G. Heshmati, X'42, of Santa Cruz, CA, died May 6, 1996. He was 87. The Persian-born WWII veteran began his career as an optical engineer for Technicolor Motion Picture Corporation of Hollywood. In 1966, he joined the faculty of Cabrillo College, where he was an electronics instructor for more than 20 years. Survivors include his wife, Leota Baumgarth Heshmati, X'41; a son; a brother; and three sisters.

Dorothy Reinke Patton, AM'43, an associate professor and assistant provost at Northeastern Illinois University, died July 11 in Havertown, PA, at 74. A son, a brother, a sister, and a grandson survive her.

Alton E. Oliver, X'46, of Seattle, WA, died November 5 at age 77. The WWII veteran worked for Safeco for 33 years. Survivors include his wife, Nancy; two sons; a brother; and six grandchildren.

Norman W. Geis, AB'47, JD'51, a Chicago attorney and expert on condominium-ownership laws, died August 27 at age 71. The WWII veteran is survived by his wife, Dorothy; three daughters; his mother; a brother; and two grandsons.

Kenneth G. Scheid, MBA'47, died January 2 in Redlands, CA, at age 73. He was with the Forbes Lithograph Manufacturing Company before teaching at the Wharton School and Carnegie Mellon, where he chaired the graphic-arts department. His wife, Minette; two daughters; and a brother survive.

Donald R. McCoy, AM'49, a historian of 20th-century America, died November 12 at age 68. The Lawrence, KS, resident joined the faculty of the University of Kansas in 1957, wrote seven books, and was nominated for Pulitzer Prizes in 1968 and 1974. Survivors include his wife, Sondra; a daughter; two sons; and three grandchildren.

1950s

Howard M. Teeple, PhD'55, AM'63, founder and executive director of the Religion and Ethics Institute in Evanston, IL, died January 9 at age 85. Before founding the institute he was head librarian at Northwestern and headed the reference department at Chicago State University. The author of six books, he is survived by his wife, Gladys.

Bernard Goldstein, PhD'57, a retired professor of sociology at Rutgers University, died October 11. The Washington, DC, resident was 71. With research interests in work, poverty, and health care, he joined the Rutgers faculty in 1956. Survivors include his longtime partner, Coralie; three children; and four grandchildren.

Mary C. Megee, PhD'58, a geologist, died November 15 at age 66. The former teacher at Southern Illinois University of East St. Louis returned in 1965 to her hometown of Joplin, MO, where she helped local municipalities obtain infrastructure improvements, especially on water and sewer systems. Survivors include a nephew and a niece.

1960s

1960s

James A. Bond, PhD'61, a retired associate professor and assistant dean of liberal arts and sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago, died December 7 in Hyde Park at age 79. The WWII and Korean-War veteran is survived by wife Ann Nordstrom Bond, PhD'57; a daughter; and two grandchildren.

Merle W. Loper, JD'65, a professor of law at the University of Maine, died December 27. He was 56. Before joining the Maine faculty in 1971, he was an attorney with the civil-rights division of the U.S. Department of Justice. He is survived by his daughter, a sister, and a brother.

Alfonso A. Ortiz, AM'63, PhD'67, a professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico, died January 27 at age 57. A scholar who researched his own people, he wrote The Tewa World: Space, Time, Being and Becoming in a Pueblo Society, which critics hailed a masterpiece but which led some of the Pueblo to ostracize him. He was awarded a Guggenheim fellowship in 1975 and became a MacArthur fellow in 1982. He is survived by two daughters, a son, his mother, and two sisters.

1970s

Lee E. Grugel, PhD'70, chancellor for the University of Wisconsin's two-year campuses, died October 31. He was 56. Before being named chancellor in 1991, he was dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at UW-Eau Claire. He is survived by his wife, Frances; a son; and a daughter.

Michael I. Waller, SM'71, PhD'73, a professor in the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, died November 28 at age 54. Survivors include his wife, Mary Bellis-Waller; a son; his mother; and two brothers.

Robert G. McDonald, Jr., MBA'74, a former CFO of Zantek and the National Opinion Research Center, died November 6 at age 68. Survivors include his wife, Barbara; a daughter; a son; a sister; and four grandchildren.

Marilyn Robinson Waldman, AM'66, PhD'74, a professor of history and comparative studies at Ohio State University, died July 8 at 53. A prolific author on Middle Eastern studies, religious studies, and historiography, she gave more than 500 public lectures and talks. Survivors include her husband, Loren K. Waldman, PhD'73; a daughter; her mother; a sister; a brother; and a grandson.

John A. Wilson, MBA'75, the European finance director for Sherpa Corporation, a U.S.-based software company, died January 27 of a brain tumor. The Berkshire, England, resident was 45. Survivors include his wife, Winifred.

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