The University of Chicago Magazine

February 1997

DEATHS

FACULTY

Laura Epstein, SB'34, AM'36, a professor emerita in the School of Social Service Administration, died September 16 in her Hyde Park home. She was 86. Epstein retired in 1985 after 18 years as an instructor and professor in the SSA. She developed an early method of short-term therapy: the task-centered model, described in her widely used book, Brief Treatment (1993). Her more recent work examines the impact of social structures on clinical social-work practice. Survivors include a brother, Robert.

Charles B. Huggins, CLA'81, the William B. Ogden distinguished service professor emeritus in surgery, died January 12 in his Hyde Park home. He was 95. The last survivor of the eight original faculty members of the medical school, Huggins is best known for his research on prostate cancer, for which he received the Nobel Prize in 1966. His research showed that cancer cells, once thought to be autonomous and self-perpetuating, depended on chemical signals such as hormones to grow and survive--a finding that immensely stimulated cancer-chemotherapy research. In 1951, he founded the the U of C's Ben May Laboratory for Cancer Research, where he shifted his attention to breast cancer, demonstrating hormone impact on that disease and opening the door for new treatments. Huggins later helped discover a family of substances that induce bone formation, whose therapeutic implications are just beginning to be explored. A banner behind his research bench said simply, "Discovery is our business." He is survived by a daughter, Emily Huggins Fine, U-High'49; seven grandchildren, including Gordon Huggins, MD'90.

TRUSTEES

Arthur F. Quern, a trustee of the University and chair of the board of the U of C Hospitals, died October 30 in the crash of a corporate jet in Wheeling, IL. He was 54. He was CEO of Aeon Risk Services, chair of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, and a member of several other boards. His public service included tenure as an assistant to New York governor Nelson Rockefeller, a deputy assistant for domestic affairs to President Gerald Ford, a director of the Illinois Department of Public Aid, and chief of staff to Illinois governor James Thompson. He is survived by his wife, Jacqueline; two daughters; his mother; a brother; and a sister.

STAFF

Ruth Davidson Schroth, AB'30, AM'32, a retired Latin teacher living in Pentwater, MI, died September 6 at age 86. After training at the American Academy of Rome as a Fulbright scholar, Schroth taught in Wisconsin, Indiana, North Carolina, and Michigan, as well as at the U of C Laboratory Schools. Survivors include a daughter, Kathy.

Gordon R. Williams, AM'52, director of the U of C's Center for Research Libraries from 1959 until 1980, died in Napa, CA, on September 15. He was 82. Williams helped achieve the center's 1965 transition from a regional cooperative to an international consortium; began several new collections programs, including the journals access service; and explored ways to develop a national lending facility. Survivors include his wife, Jane, and a daughter.

Lloyd B. Urdal, PhD'53, a retired professor at Washington State University, died July 28 in Spokane, WA. After serving as principal of the University's Laboratory Schools (1954­55), he joined the education department at Washington State, led the college of education for many years, and chaired adult and continuing education until his retirement in 1982. He is survived by his wife, Grace; a son; three daughters; and six grandchildren.

1910s

Bernard Nath, PhB'19, JD'21, a prominent Chicago real-estate lawyer and senior partner of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, died September 18 at age 97. Among the major developments in which he participated were Prairie Shores, Lake Meadows, and Sandburg Village, each of which attempted racial and economic integration. He was past chair of the national executive committee of the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith and past president of the Jewish Welfare Fund of Metropolitan Chicago. Survivors include his wife, Ruth; two daughters; and six grandchildren.

1920s

William H. Adler, PhB'24, died September 16 in St. Clair, MN, at age 93. He had lived in Lexington, MI, for 50 years. Survivors include a brother, Paul M. Adler, PhB'32, and a sister.

Rebecca April Robinson, PhB'26, AM'39, a retired social worker, died January 20, 1993 at age 94. She worked for the Jewish Social Service Bureau in Chicago and for Cook County until 1964, when she moved to New Jersey. She retired in 1983 at age 84.

Keith L. Dugan, PhB'27, a retired accountant, died June 27 in Des Plaines. He was 91. Except for a five-year stint in the 1920s working for a bank in China, he was a lifelong resident of the Chicago area. Survivors include a nephew.

Helen Engel Rankin, PhB'27, died December 13, 1990, in Tifton, GA. Survivors include a son, Robert L. Rankin, AM'68, PhD'72.

1930s

Moody E. Prior, PhD'30, an emeritus professor of English, and founder and first president of the Northwestern University Press, died October 25 at age 95. The Evanston resident taught at Northwestern for 45 years, also serving as dean of its graduate school. He is survived by his wife, Carlene, and a sister.

Harold O. Gulliksen, PhD'31, an emeritus professor of psychology at Princeton, died October 27 at age 93. A pioneer in psychological-testing theory, he was research secretary for the College Board, directed the Educational Testing Service's psychometric-fellowship program, and received the prestigious gold medal for achievement from the American Psychological Association. Survivors include two daughters and six grandchildren.

Morris Sostrin, LLB'31, a Chicago real-estate attorney, died September 17 at age 92. He was partner in the now-defunct Loop law firm Reinwald and Sostrin, which he dissolved in 1986 when he retired. Sostrin was active in the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith and was a member of Zionists of America. He is survived by his wife, Jeanne; a stepson; and a sister.

Carol McDowell Ferguson, AM'32, a social worker, died February 28, 1996, in Sunnyvale, CA. In the 1930s, she helped establish federal relief offices in Montana, Oregon, and Washington. She moved to California in 1953 and thereafter worked for the Family Service Association in Palo Alto and the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in San Francisco. Survivors include a son, Keith.

Franklin W. Klein, JD'32, a retired attorney, died October 24 at age 88. After practicing for 57 years with the Chicago firm of Klein, Thorpe and Jenkins, he retired in 1991. Survivors include three daughters, nine grandchildren, and a brother.

Robert E. Walsh, PhB'32, a retired steel-industry executive, died September 16 at age 85. Until retiring in 1976, the Hinsdale resident held positions with Continental Foundry and Machine and Blaw-Knox Mill and Foundry. Survivors include his wife, Shirley; two sons; two daughters; and two sisters.

Alfred Pollack, SB'33, of Chicago died May 26. Survivors include his wife, Blanche; his daughter, Roberta Pollack Saxon, SM'69, PhD'71; and a son.

Alice Davis Melberg, PhB'34, AM'36, a retired elementary-school teacher, died on April 30 in Yakima, WA. She is survived by her husband, Norman; two sons; four grandchildren; and a sister, Edith Davis Sylander, AB'41.

Gilbert C. Hilbrant, X'36, of Sarasota, FL, died at age 85. Survivors include his wife, Virginia.

Mary Herzog Muehlhausen, AB'36, of Excelsior, MN, died December 11, 1995, at age 81. The former Chicago resident was a librarian at several institutions during the 1940s. Two sisters survive.

Barbara Moulton Browne, AB'37, a retired medical officer in the federal government, died May 12 in Arlington, VA. She was 80.

Clara Lesher McCausland, PhD'37, a civic activist, died September 18 in Evanston at age 94. The first president of the League of Women Voters of Chicago and president the Chicago Child Care Society's board, she wrote several books. Among survivors are two sons, including John L. McCausland, U-High'56; and two granddaughters.

Ruth Bilgray Waxman, AB'37, PhD'41, of Great Neck, NY, a prominent lecturer on Judaism, died October 18. She was 80. An early advocate of women's rights in conservative Judaism, she was editor of the quarterly Judaism (1972­94) and taught at Adelphi University, Long Island University (C.W. Post Campus), Queens College, and SUNY at Stony Brook. She is survived by her husband, Mordecai Waxman, AB'37; three sons; five grandchildren; and a brother, Albert T. Bilgray, PhB'32.

Russell M. Baird, AB'38, a retired partner in the Chicago law firm Sidley & Austin, died November 5 in a swimming accident in the Cayman Islands. He was 80. Retired in 1986, he was a past president of the Mental Health Association of Greater Chicago and served on the boards of the Chicago Crime Commission, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Survivors include a daughter, two sons, and a brother, Roger A. Baird, AB'35, JD'38.

Leonore Wertheimer Schlanger, AB'38, of Houston died July 29 at age 79. Survivors include her husband, Herman A. Schlanger, X'37; two daughters; a son; and four grandchildren.

E. Nelson Thomas, AB'39, a retiree from a career in consumer-goods marketing, advertising, and research, died October 26 in Estes Park, CO. He was 80. A WWII veteran, he worked in the market-research division of Time, Inc., until 1983. Survivors include his wife, Audrey Smith Thomas, AB'39; two daughters; a son, Gregory N. Thomas, MBA'72; three grandchildren; and a brother, E. Gregory Thomas, SB'44, MD'46.

1940s

Irving J. Lewis, AM'40, an expert on public-health policy and a retired professor of public policy and community health at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, died September 14. He was 78. The WWII veteran worked for several federal agencies and in 1968 was named deputy administrator of the Health Services and Mental Health Administration in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. He is survived by his wife, Rose; two daughters; a son; two sisters; and three grandsons.

Harold F. Schuknecht, MD'40, an internationally renowned ear surgeon, researcher, and teacher, died October 19 at age 79. A WWII veteran, he was an instructor and assistant professor from 1947 until 1953 at the Pritzker School of Medicine. Moving to Boston, he was the Walter Augustus LeCompte professor of otology, as well as a professor of laryngology, at Harvard, and chief of otolaryngology at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He retired in the late 1980s. He is survived by his wife, Anne; a daughter; a son; two grandsons; and two brothers.

Stanley R. Chartrand, AM'41, of Boulder, CO, died February 4, 1996. With the U.S. Information Agency, he served in India, Jordan, Iraq, and Iran. He is survived by his wife, Gertrude Kellogg Chartrand, X'38; two sons; and a daughter.

Lionel H. Wallace, X'41, MBA'42, a retired administrator for the Chicago public schools, died September 24 at age 77. After retirement, he taught night school at city high schools and was a counselor at Maranatha Christian Academy. In 1992 he was honored by the GSB Alumni Association as the first African American to have received an M.B.A. from the Graduate School of Business. Survivors include his wife, Violet; two sons; and a grandson.

Robert A. Miller, AB'42, a retired president of W.R. Grace, Cryovac Division, died September 13. The Spartanburg, SC, resident was a WWII veteran. He is survived by his wife, Mary Lucene Price Miller, AB'43; two sons; three daughters; and seven grandchildren.

William F. Read III, PhD'42, a retired professor of geology at Lawrence University, died October 20. He was 81. Widely published in his field, he also edited the Journal of Geological Education. He is survived by two sons, two daughters, a sister, a brother, and five grandchildren.

Lelia Mason Easson, SM'43, of Baltimore, died September 18, 1995, at age 94. Survivors include a son, Graeme.

Judah L. Stampfer, AB'43, AM'54, a professor of English at SUNY at Stony Brook, died October 4. He was 72. An ordained rabbi, he was also a poet (Jerusalem Has Two Faces) and novelist (Saul Myers). He is survived by his wife, Doris; a daughter; a son; and a brother.

Anselm L. Strauss, AM'42, PhD'45, a professor emeritus of sociology at the University of California, San Francisco, and a pioneer in medical sociology, died September 5 at age 79. One of the first sociologists to study dying and how it was handled in hospitals, he also was internationally known for developing, with Barney Glaser, the research method known as grounded theory. He is survived by his wife, Frances.

Margery Sickels Bloom, PhB'46, of Lansdowne, PA, died September 30. The daughter of the late Ada Huelster Sickels, PhB'15, she owned, operated, and retired from a type-composition business and, with her late husband, John H. Bloom, AM'50, cofounded the Lansdowne History Forum. Survivors include a daughter; and a brother, William H. Sickels, PhB'51.

Arthur Brody, PhB'47, a professor of law emeritus in residence at Southwestern University, died October 5 of cancer. He was 71. Before joining the Southwestern faculty in 1979, he was a partner in the firm of Katz, Friedman, Schur & Eagle, where he specialized in labor law and arbitration. He is survived by his wife, Beverly; a son; a daughter; two grandchildren; a sister; and a brother.

Joseph G. Dawson, Jr., AM'47, PhD'49, an emeritus professor at Louisiana State University and a clinical psychologist, died September 4 at his home in Baton Rouge. The WWII veteran also taught at the universities of North Carolina, Florida, and Notre Dame. Survivors include his wife, Susan Hubbell Dawson, AM'44; a son; a daughter; and four grandchildren.

Michael Hinko, Sr., AB'49, JD'52, of Tarpon Springs, FL, died October 7 at age 76. The WWII veteran practiced law in Chicago and its south suburbs before retiring in 1988. Survivors include his wife, Dolores; a son; three daughters; a sister; a brother; and a grandson.

Max J. Putzel, AB'49, AM'52, PhD'65, a former professor of German language and literature, died September 19 in Hyde Park. He was 71. He taught modern languages at Indiana University Northwest from 1965 until 1990 and chaired the German languages department from 1965 to 1971. The WWII veteran specialized in 19th-century German literature and was a supporter of the arts in Chicago. Survivors include his wife, Sheila, and a sister.

1950s

John Forwalter, DB'50, an artist, Unitarian minister, and editor, died October 6 in Hyde Park. He was 75. An art critic for the Gary Post-Tribune in Gary, IN, since 1970, he cofounded the 57th Street Art Fair in 1948. Among his survivors are three daughters, including Diana Forwalter Troxell, AB'72; a son; and nine grandchildren.

Harold W. Gautier, Jr., AM'51, a Chicago lawyer, died October 9 in his Evanston home. The WWII veteran was 75. He is survived by his wife, Dorothy; six daughters; two sons; a brother; three sisters; and six grandchildren.

Joella J. Antes, AM'52, an emerita professor at the University of Iowa, died September 10.

Kay Glickman Franklin, AB'53, AM'70, an author, teacher, and community activist, died October 16 at age 73. A former member of the English faculty of Purdue University, she was the programming and publicity director at the Michigan City, IN, public library. Survivors include her husband, Robert L. Franklin, PhB'48; a son; two daughters; two granddaughters; and a brother.

Carl E. Sagan, AB'54, SB'55, SM'56, PhD'60, an astronomer and Pulitzer Prize­winning author best known for his popular TV series, Cosmos, died December 20 in Seattle, WA, of a rare bone marrow disease. He was 62. Sagan received Emmy and Peabody awards as the writer, narrator, and host of the 13-part Cosmos, which first aired in 1980 and was seen in 60 countries. Sagan's book by the same name, published as a companion for the series, is considered the most widely read science book in the English language. His Dragons of Eden won the Pulitzer Prize in 1978. He also won 22 honorary degrees and the Public Welfare Medal, the highest award of the National Academy of Sciences. A resident of Ithaca, NY, he was the David Duncan professor of astronomy and space sciences at Cornell University for 30 years and also directed its Laboratory for Planetary Studies. In 1993, Sagan presented the U of C's first annual Carl Sagan awards for excellence in teaching in the College. The U of C Alumni Association awarded him a professional achievement citation in 1981. Sagan is survived by his wife, Ann; five children; a grandson; and a sister.

Frank A. Kyle, MBA'56, of Crown Point, IN, died August 24. The retired president of LaSalle Steel in Hammond, he is survived by his wife, Pauline; four sons; one daughter; ten grandchildren; and a brother.

Louis V. Mangrum, JD'57, died March 27 in Mayfield, KY, at age 69. He had his own law practice in Mayfield, where he had been living since 1960. Among survivors are a sister and three brothers, including Franklin M. Mangrum, PhD'57.

1960s

Donald E. Egan, JD'61, a prominent Chicago lawyer, was killed October 6 on a bicycle trip in rural Virginia. He was 60. A founding partner of Katten Muchin & Zavis, he chaired the Illinois Supreme Court's committee on character and fitness and a past member of the board of managers of the Chicago Bar Association. Survivors include his wife, Emilie; three daughters; a son; and a brother.

Diane Dickerson Montgomery, AM'61, a Chicago civic leader and a psychiatric social worker, died October 6 at age 62. She worked for a number of social-service agencies, including Jewish Family Services, and served on the boards of the Art Institute and the Chicago Urban League. Survivors include her husband, C. Howard; two sons; a daughter; and two grandchildren.

John H. Sherman, DB'61, a former minister of University Church in Hyde Park, a former U.S. Marine, and an economist for naval shipyards, died January 24, 1996. The Fresno, CA, resident was 65. While a minister of the Hyde Park church, he was active in the civil-rights movement, including the march on Washington, DC; voter registration in Mississippi; and the Selma-to-Montgomery march. He is survived by his wife, Kathryn; two sons; a daughter; and three grandchildren.

Haukur Helgason, AM'67, of Kopavogur, Iceland, died July 28 of a heart attack. He is survived by his wife, Nanci; two foster daughters; and six grandchildren.

1970s

John J. Tigert VI, JD'73, a partner in the law firm Tigert & Ledig in Washington, DC, and Fairfax, VA, and a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force reserve, died August 3 at his home in Washington. The former senior trial attorney in the Justice Department opened a firm that specialized in aviation and insurance litigation. The Vietnam War veteran also served on active Air Force duty during Operation Desert Storm and worked part time as a flight instructor and engineer. Survivors include his father and a brother.

Harold J. Austin, AM'56, PhD'75, died September 1 at age 66. The Chicago native worked as a copy editor for the Chicago Sun-Times and was a retired associate professor of philosophy at the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN. He specialized in Greek philosophy and ethics. He is survived by his wife, Margaret; two daughters; and two sisters.

1990s

Louise de Marigny Smith Bross, AM'77, PhD'94, an art historian, scholar, teacher, and Chicago philanthropic and civic leader, died October 13 of cancer. She was 57. The 16th-century Italian art and architecture specialist was on the faculty of Lake Forest College. She directed the Richard L. Feigen Gallery for six years and was on the boards of several philanthropic and civic organizations. She is survived by her husband, John; three daughters; a son; her father; a brother; and a sister.


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