Obituaries
Richard B. Woolley, retired Navy commander and educator, 81
A graduate of Annapolis, Richard B. Woolley (M.A. ’51) passed away Dec. 11, 2002 in San Diego. He graduated from San Diego State University and USC with a master’s degree in speech pathology. Woolley served 29 years in the Navy, retiring as a commander. He also taught speech, stagecraft, drama and English for 33 years, and was very active in community organizations. Woolley was a 32nd degree Mason in the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, a member of the Normal Heights Lodge No. 632. He was a member of the California State Sheriff’s Association, the Military Order of the World Wars, a life member of the California and national LST Association, and many other organizations. He is survived by his wife, brother, daughter-in-law and son-in-law.
Bob deLauer, former NFL football player, 82
Bob deLauer (B.A. ’42), who played football for USC and had a brief NFL career with the Cleveland and Los Angeles Rams, died of emphysema in his Hollywood Hills home on Nov. 27, 2002. An offensive lineman at USC from 1939 to 1941, deLauer was a member of the Trojan team that won the 1940 Rose Bowl under legendary coach Howard Jones, and was captain of the 1941 team. He also played for the NFL champion Cleveland Rams in 1945. In 1946, after the team moved to California, deLauer kicked a field goal to beat the Washington Redskins in the first NFL game ever in Los Angeles. He is survived by his wife, Lois, and daughters Diane, Julie and Dane.
Martin D. Kamen, professor emeritus, 89
Martin D. Kamen, a professor emeritus of biological sciences at USC whose discovery of radioactive carbon-14 helped revolutionize biochemistry, died Aug. 31, 2002. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Kamen came to USC in the fall of 1974 as a professor of biological sciences. He held joint appointments in chemistry and biochemistry, and headed the USC program in molecular biology. Born in Toronto, Kamen started his career as a radiochemist at UC Berkeley’s Lawrence Radiation Laboratory in 1937 and worked on the Manhattan Project. But his friendship with a Russian consul—along with a request from the Russian consulate in Seattle for radioactive phosphorous to treat a consul member who had leukemia—led to Kamen’s removal from the project on the groundless charge of giving atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. Despite these problems, Kamen won the 1995 Enrico Fermi Award, the U.S. government’s oldest science and technology honor, for his achievements in the field of nuclear energy. He also helped develop the chemistry department at UC San Diego, and the molecular biology and biochemistry programs at USC. Aside from his wide-ranging interests in science, Kamen was also a talented violist who often played chamber music with friends such as Isaac Stern. He is survived by his son, David; his sister, Lillian Smith; and a grandson.
George R. Richter Jr., partner of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter and Hampton, 92
George R. Richter Jr. (B.A. ’30), the last surviving name partner and founding member of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter and Hampton, died July 14, 2002. Friends and colleagues remembered Richter as a “lawyer’s lawyer” who could answer just about any question you threw at him. He was renowned for his dedication to the legal profession, as well as his commitment to education. Richter started his legal career in 1933 as an associate with Mathes & Sheppard. Known as an expert in labor law and financial institutions and bankruptcy, Richter was most recently of counsel to the Banking and Finance Department in the firm’s Orange County office. He held many leadership positions in both local and national legal associations. In addition to his role in business law, he sat on the boards of a number of community organizations. Richter was born in Blue Island, Ill., the son of a druggist who immigrated from Germany and a homemaker. His family moved to California when he was 16. Richter graduated from USC in 1930 with degrees in economics and psychology, and went on to earn his law degree from USC law school three years later. In 1998, Richter gave an unrestricted gift of $1 million in stocks to the law school, and the following year USC named part of the school the George R. Richter Jr. Commons in his honor. He is survived by his wife, Betty; son, Craig; daughter, Georgeann; and several grandchildren.
Gene Edward Algee, social worker, 77
Born in Los Angeles, Gene Edward Algee (B.A. ’51) died in Santa Monica on Aug. 8, 2002. Algee spent his career in social work practice. He served his country in the Navy as a pharmacist’s mate first class during World War II, helped develop the family care program at the VA hospital in West Los Angeles, and worked in clinical settings and private practice. He is survived by his wife, Christina; his four children, Carl, Nina, Michelle and Lisa; his sister, Barbara Snipes; and many grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins.
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Ruth Leah Weg
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Ruth Leah Weg, professor emerita, 82
Ruth Leah Weg (M.A. ’54, Ph.D. ’58), professor emerita of gerontology at USC’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, died Oct. 25, 2002. Weg earned her master’s in biology and physiology, and her doctorate in zoology from USC. An authority on older workers, she stressed the importance of adults remaining independent for as long as possible. From 1960 to 1970, Weg served as a research associate and lecturer in biology and physiology in USC College. In 1970, she became an associate professor of gerontology, attaining a full professorship in 1984. She served as associate director for training at USC’s Andrus Gerontology Center from 1968 to 1974, co-directing, and later directing, the center’s Summer Institute for Advanced Study in Gerontology from 1969 to 1974. From 1974 to 1976 she was dean of students at the Davis School. USC’s gerontology school was founded in 1975 with a gift from philanthropist Leonard Davis, co-founder of the American Association of Retired Persons. Weg was one of the school’s first faculty members and a co-designer of its curriculum. Her last year teaching at USC was 1990. A native of New York City, Weg took pleasure in traveling, writing and spending time with family and friends. She is survived by her husband, Martin S. Weg; her children, Hanna Weg, Robert Bass and Andrea Bass De Cosmos; her stepdaughter, Lisa Weg; her granddaughter, Sara Zoe Weg; and two sisters.
David E. Eskey, ESL expert, 69
David E. Eskey, a professor of educational policy, planning and administration in the USC Rossier School of Education, died of a heart attack on Oct. 19, 2002. An expert on the administration of multilingual and multicultural programs, Eskey had worked at USC in various positions since the mid-1970s, including director of USC College’s American Language Institute. At the time of his death, he was director of the Rossier School’s Master of Science Program for the teaching of English as a second language. Eskey served as a consultant on second-language teaching for the Educational Testing Service and other organizations, and was a national consultant on the subject for the National Association for Foreign Student Affairs. He also taught at Carnegie-Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. Abroad he taught at the American Institute of Languages in Baghdad, Iraq, the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and the Thammasat University in Bangkok. Born in Pittsburgh, Eskey earned his B.A. in English from Pennsylvania State University, his M.A. in English from Columbia University, and a second M.A. in linguistics and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Pittsburgh. He is survived by his wife, Eleanor; his children, Megan, Jennifer and Katherine; stepchildren, Kim Black-Washington and Robert Black; and brother, Kenneth Eskey.
Oscar M. Hechter, scientist, 86
Oscar M. Hechter (Ph.D. ’44), who had been a scientist with the Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology in Shrewsbury, died Dec. 20, 2002 in Seattle. Hechter was an expert on the physiology of endocrine glands and other organs. He was a recipient of the Gregory Pincus Medal and Award, and the Ciba Award. Along with other Worcester Foundation scientists, Hechter contributed to research leading to the first oral contraceptive. He was later chairman of the Physiology Department at Northwestern University Medical School from 1970 to 1978. The son of Romanian immigrants, Hechter started his career in science with a job cleaning rat cages in a metabolism and endocrinology laboratory at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago. He took college courses at night and eventually received a scholarship to the University of Chicago, from which he graduated in 1938. He received his doctorate in biochemistry from USC. Hechter was living in Seattle at the time of his death. He leaves his wife, Gertrude; his son, Michael; and grandchildren in New York and Seattle.
Earle T. Audet, former NFL football player, 81
Earle T. Audet (B.A. ’52) of Marina del Rey died Dec. 18, 2002 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Born in Providence, R.I., Audet was a national shot put champion and played pro football with the Washington Redskins, the Los Angeles Dons and the Calgary Stampeders. A member of the NFL Players Union and the NFL Retired Players, he was with the Los Angeles Dons when they joined the NFL, and finished his football career in Canada. Audet worked for the Los Angeles County Probation Department from 1953 to 1983, when he retired. He was also a Marine Corps veteran. He leaves his wife, DeDe Audet, and brother, Ernest W. Audet. |
