Subscribe
Donald Glaser, a Nobel-prize winning physicist who reinvented himself as a biotech pioneer and later dove into the field of neurobiology, died in his sleep Thursday morning, Feb. 28, at his home in Berkeley. Glaser, a professor emeritus of physics and of molecular and cell biology, was 86.
Obituaries archive
Research associate Rebecca Wenk dies at 31
August 18, 2011: Rebecca Wenk, a research associate in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, died after a brief battle with thyroid cancer on Thursday, July 14. She was 31.
Wine industry pioneer Kirby Moulton, 83, dies
July 6, 2011: Kirby Moulton, internationally recognized extension economist at the University of California, Berkeley, passed away on May 20. He was 83.
Range management expert Harold Heady, forestry professor emeritus, dies at 95
June 9, 2011: Professor Emeritus of Forestry Harold F. Heady, recipient of the Berkeley Citation in 1991 for his contributions to range management and the university, has passed away at the age of 95.
Paleontologist and sustainability advocate Bill Berry dies at 79
June 1, 2011: William B. N. Berry, a paleontologist and long-time advocate of environmental sustainability, died of cancer on May 20 at the age of 79. Berry was former director of the Museum of Paleontology, chair of the Department of Paleontology and director of the Environmental Studies Program.
Russian history authority Nicholas V. Riasanovsky dies at 87
May 24, 2011: Nicholas Valentine Riasanovsky, an emeritus professor of European history at UC Berkeley, and a leading authority on the history of Russia, died May 14 in an Oakland, Calif., nursing home following a long illness. He was 87.
Eugene Lee, former IGS director, dies at 86
April 29, 2011: Eugene Lee, professor emeritus of political science, longtime director of UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, and a distinguished scholar of California government, died Wednesday, April 27, at his Sonoma home. He was 86.
Sandy Elberg, former Grad Division dean, dies at 97
April 26, 2011: Sanford Samuel (Sandy) Elberg, professor emeritus at UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health and former dean of the Graduate Division, died Apr. 8. He was 97.
William Brinner, scholar of Near Eastern studies, dies at 86
February 9, 2011: William “Ze’ev” Brinner, a professor emeritus of Near Eastern studies at the University of California, Berkeley, who was known for his commitment to fostering understanding between Muslims and Jews, died at his Berkeley home on Feb. 3 after a lengthy illness. He was 86.
Memorial service for Charles Muscatine is Sunday
February 8, 2011: A memorial service for Charles Muscatine, late Professor Emeritus of English, will be held at 11 a.m., Sunday, February 13, 2011, in the Pauley Ballroom of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Student Union.
J-School benefactor David Logan dies
January 25, 2011:
David Logan, whose endowment created the Investigating Reporting Program at the University of California, Berkeley, died Jan. 22 in Chicago. He was 93.
Geoffrey Keppel, scholar of human memory, dies at 75
January 10, 2011: Geoffrey Keppel, a professor emeritus of psychology at UC Berkeley whose research expanded our understanding of what causes humans to forget, died Dec. 31, 2010, after a long struggle with chronic lymphatic leukemia. He was 75.
Muscatine memorial on Feb. 13
January 3, 2011: A memorial service for the late Charles Muscatine, a University of California, Berkeley, emeritus professor of English, is set for 11 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 13, in the Pauley Ballroom of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Student Union.
Catherine ‘Kay’ Kerr, environmentalist and widow of UC president, dies at 99
January 3, 2011:
Catherine “Kay” Kerr, a dedicated environmentalist and widow of Clark Kerr, the 12th president of the University of California system, died Saturday (Dec. 18). She was 99.
Richard N. Goldman, philanthropist, adviser and friend of the university, passes away
November 30, 2010: UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau issued a statement today on the passing of Richard N. Goldman, who died Sunday, Nov. 28, at the age of 90. Birgeneau called Goldman “a visionary philanthropist, remarkable business leader and public citizen, and devoted friend and alumnus.”
Charles Desoer, professor emeritus of electrical engineering and computer sciences, dies
November 4, 2010:
Charles A. Desoer, a professor emeritus of electrical engineering and computer sciences at the UC Berkeley, died Monday at age 84.
Susanna Barrows, scholar of modern French history, dies at 65
November 2, 2010:
Susanna I. Barrows, a professor emerita of history at the University of California, Berkeley, and an authority on modern French history, died at her home in Berkeley on Wednesday, Oct. 27, after a suspected heart attack. She was 65.
Anthropologist Burton Benedict dies at age 87
September 23, 2010: Burton Benedict, a professor emeritus of social anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley, and former director of the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology, died of heart failure on Sunday (Sept. 19) at his Berkeley home. He was 87.
Campus to remember those who died over the past year
September 7, 2010:
On Monday, Sept. 27, the Berkeley campus will gather for its ninth annual memorial service to honor those of its own who passed away during the past year.
Memorial service planned for UC Berkeley sophomore and plane crash victim Misha Dawood
August 3, 2010:
A memorial service is being planned for Sunday, Aug. 29, for Misha Dawood, a UC Berkeley sophomore and rising soccer talent who was among 152 passengers killed last Wednesday in what is being deemed Pakistan’s deadliest air crash.
Architecture professor and activist Kenneth Simmons dies at 77
August 2, 2010: Kenneth Harlan Simmons, a professor emeritus of architecture at the University of California, Berkeley, died of cancer in Johannesburg, South Africa, on July 6 at the age of 77. He was known for his work in equal rights, urban planning and community development from San Francisco to Detroit, Harlem and South Africa.
World-renowned astronomer Donald C. Backer dies at age 66
July 29, 2010: Don Backer, a professor at UC Berkeley’s Department of Astronomy, and a world leader in the field of radio astronomy, died on Sunday, July 25. He was 66.
Jean Gray Hargrove, music library benefactor
July 27, 2010:
Jean Gray Hargrove, an alumna whose generosity helped build the campus music library that bears her name, died July 12 at her Berkeley home.
Philip Frickey, leading scholar in federal Indian law, dies at 57
July 16, 2010:
Philip Frickey, one of the nation’s foremost experts on federal Indian law, died Sunday, July 11, at the age of 57.
Eminent statistician David Blackwell has died at 91
July 15, 2010:
David H. Blackwell, an eminent statistician at UC Berkeley who was the first black admitted to the National Academy of Sciences, died Thursday, July 8, of natural causes at Alta Bates Medical Center in Berkeley. He was 91.
Philip Selznick, leading scholar in sociology and law, dies at 91
June 16, 2010:
Philip Selznick, professor emeritus of law and sociology at the University of California, Berkeley, and a leading expert in the sociology of both law and organizations, died Saturday, June 12. He was 91.
Painter, printmaker Karl Kasten dies at age 94
May 12, 2010: Acclaimed painter and printmaker Karl Kasten, a professor emeritus in the University of California, Berkeley’s Department of Art Practice and a leading figure in “The Berkeley School” of abstract expressionism, died at his Berkeley home on May 3 at the age of 94. He had suffered from pulmonary fibrosis. Kasten’s art was exhibited around the world at major public and private museums.
Janet Adelman, scholar of Shakespeare, psychoanalytic and feminist critic, dies at 69
April 21, 2010:
anet Adelman, a University of California, Berkeley, professor emeritus of English who wove her research on psychoanalysis, gender and race into a scholarly exploration of Shakespeare and other English Renaissance authors, died on April 6 at her home in Berkeley. She was 69 and had cancer.
Canadian history scholar Thomas G. Barnes dies
April 2, 2010:
Thomas Garden Barnes, a professor emeritus of history and law at the University of California, Berkeley, and a leader in the development of Canadian studies in the United States, died on March 9 after suffering a stroke. He was 79. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon credited Barnes with increasing the understanding of Canada in the United States and with promoting closer political, economic and cultural ties between the two countries.
Charles Muscatine, Chaucer scholar and educational reformer, dies at 89
March 17, 2010: Charles Muscatine, a UC Berkeley professor emeritus of English, a scholar of Chaucer and medieval literature, and an educational reformer known for refusing to sign a state loyalty oath during the McCarthy era, died of an infection in Oakland on Friday, March 12. He was 89.
Thomas Pigford, influential voice in nuclear policy, dies at 87
March 5, 2010: Thomas Pigford, professor emeritus and founding chair of nuclear engineering at UC Berkeley, and an influential voice in nuclear policy, has died Feb. 28 at the age of 87. Pigford was recognized internationally for helping nuclear science evolve into a discipline that incorporated principles of chemical engineering, and he was respected among scientists and environmentalists alike for his technical expertise and objectivity.
