We learned today that Tony Gorry, who served Rice in many capacities since arriving here in 1992, passed away this weekend.
Here’s a link to a memorial piece by my friend and colleague Jade Boyd that has all the particulars of his fascinating career, one full of interesting twists, wide-ranging interests, and opportunities seized.
I knew him best as a writer and that may be his lasting legacy. Here’s a link to a beautiful memoir, originally published in 2012 a journal called War, Literature & the Arts. I found it reprinted on the Yale Class of 1962 website. It’s worth your time. Be sure to read the 2014 postscript as well.
Tony Gorry, rest in peace.
Tony actually taught an Artifiial Intelligence course at Rice in 1977 or 1978. He was, as always, a phenomenal lecturer with a penetrating wit and a keen understanding of both his subject matter and its implications for society at large.
My time at Rice was in the late 60s and very early ’70s. Of course, the 60s were before Dr. Tony’s time inside the hedges.
The one major lesson I took away from my years at Rice (officially studying EE, math and geology), was to think of myself as a “Renaissance guy”, because of the way courses were structured at the time to stretch personal boundaries.
Reading those linked stories on this page makes me wish I could have met him, because the drum he seemed to march to sounds a whole lot like the one in my head. I want to believe that he and I would have had many interesting things to talk about together. RIP, Tony.
Thanks for finding those Yale links and posting this, Melissa.
Melissa, I feel fortunate that, through you, the hand of fate connected me with Tony’s memoir and postscript. It is a beautiful piece that I will save, share, and reread.