Remembering Larry Adams, Ph.D. '70

Friends and former students share their memories of a favorite instructor


"I am so sorry to hear this news. I was maybe 19 when I came into his orbit. He had such a fine mind and warm soul. He was the first to make me see that a professor (and I guess, at the same time, [an] adult!) was pretty much just like me and not in some pantheon apart. In that way, he helped me to grow up. Larry and I shared a lot of political values as well, and we became friends during the planning and march to Sacramento in 1968. On this Yom Kippur, I will say kaddish for Professor Larry Adams."

-- Alan Schwartz


"I entered the Adams orbit in 1962, Pol Sci 20. Hard to believe he was just 26 years old--a "lecturer" in Political Science. His exuberance for the back-and-forth, engaged dialogue interrupted what was clearly hours of his own homework written by hand on pages and pages of notes. You can count on one hand the number of professors who were as prodigious in their preparation. He enjoyed the earnest cut and thrust of debate--very dignified, I think, in those days. It was the hardest "B" I ever worked for, but he had demanding academic standards. As years went by he took personal responsibility for his failure to deter my wayward political ways--mock horror (or, perhaps, real) at the political path I took. My guess is that Larry took pride in any student who embraced politics as the result of his teaching. He was a fine man . . . a gentleman . . . easy to laugh, fierce in intellect . . . energized by the electricity in the dialogue."

-- Kenneth L. Khachigian, '66


"I am one of those who loved and admired him tremendously. He was my teacher and a friend. Once, his parents came to my home on Stagecoach Road and took me and my 3 children to dinner at Mattei's Tavern, to thank me for starting the annual Larry Adams Blood Drive at UCSB, run by the AS Community Affairs Board. Those were exciting days, punctuated with many tragedies, and Larry helped us as students to avoid becoming cynical."

-- Patrice Summers, '68


"I remember only a small handful of teachers/professors in my life who later came to mind in moments of discussion or thought or even confusion. Larry came to mind many times and at those moments I became an appreciative student again. He was still teaching. And he was very, very special."

-- George Kieffer


"He downplayed his hemophilia, which caused many health problems. Larry would rather talk about you, the upcoming election, American government back to the founding fathers, theologians, Dodger baseball, movies, or Marc Chagall. He was a bright spirit who influenced students, colleagues and friends with his curiosity and pursuit of life."

-- R. Marilyn Lee, '69


"When I used the term 'adulation' in the piece to describe my feelings for Larry Adams as a teacher, that was a bit of an understatement. I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to write about him." (Referring to an article submitted to the Santa Barbara Independent. The full text can be seen at "Larry Adams: a Tribute," reprinted here with the author's permission.)

--Fred Hofmann, '69