Otis Monroe Walter
April 20, 1921 - June 13, 2013
- Share:
Otis Monroe Walter
April 20, 1921 - June 13, 2013
Obituary
Otis M. Walter died on June 13, 2013. He was born to Dr. and Mrs. Otis M. Walter on April 20, 1921 in Chicago, and named Otis Monroe Walter, Jr. After his father’s death he dropped the Jr.
He was graduated from Crocket Elementary School, El Paso, TX in 1934, and Oak Park and River Forest Township High School, Oak Park, IL in 1938. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Northwestern University in 1942, as well as his Masters in 1943 and Ph.D. in 1948, majoring in speech and psychology.
Professionally, he decided to study speech because he felt that If we could teach one generation to speak intelligently, we could turn the world around. His greatest professional interest was in classical rhetoric, which focuses on ideas about communication from the pre-Socratics to the present.
He taught at the University of Illinois, (Urbana) and the University of Houston, where he was chairperson of the department of speech for seven years. Most of his professional life was spent at the University of Pittsburgh, from which he retired as Professor Emeritus. He also taught at the University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa), and at the State University of New York at Binghamton.
After retiring, he moved to Bellingham, WA. There he joined the Bellingham Unitarian fellowship; he had been a Universalist since the age of twelve.
He was the author of about fifty articles, book reviews, sermons, and lectures at various universities. He authored the following books: Thinking and Speaking. A Guide to Intelligent Communication (with
Robert L. Scott). The book had five editions, the second of which was translated into Spanish. Speaking To Inform and Persuade had two editions. His favorite was Speaking Intelligently: Communication for Problem Solving. The books were published by The Macmillan Company.
He was a life-long liberal, a Democrat, and was fond of the arts. He was an atheist and often said, When I see what religions have done, I thank God that I am an atheist. He loved teaching and said that, Teaching is, in part, having desperately to know, and then having desperately to tell others about it.
He was a life Member (#5) of the American Civil Liberties Union, and was a member of Phi Kappa Phi, a national honorary fraternity, conferred on him by the faculty of the University of Houston.
He requested that there be no funeral; he will be buried in his family plot in Mt. Emblem Cemetery near Chicago. He has no survivors. He was most thankful for his neighbors, friends, relatives, both those long gone and those surviving, and especially to his dear companion of nearly fifty years, Ronald L. Vrana.
Farewell Tribute Information
Memorial Services will be announced later
6 responses to Otis Monroe Walter
Raymond Ballweg says:
June 13, 2013
Otis will be greatly missed at our weekly luncheons of ROMEO at Arliss’s restaurant. He was a serious and introspective commentor on most of the issues raised during our weekly discussions. Otis was an early participant in the group and added insight into our discussions of government, politics and local issues. May he rest in peace.
BARBARA BALFOUR says:
June 13, 2013
Knowing Otis for 20 years is one of the joys of my life. On many occasions he and Ron were holiday dinner guests in my home. During those festivities their company was enjoyed by my family and friends. I’m glad that I spent the evening of Otis’s last birthday with him, even though we listened to rock music and so pleased to have hosted several birthday dinners for him including his last one. To have spent parts of most days with him while in Hospice House and noticing how safe he felt to be there was inspirational to me.
LaVerne Scheltens says:
June 13, 2013
I’m so sorry I didn’t investigate sooner after I learned I had a distant cousin, Otis Monroe Walter, living just an hour’s drive from me in Washington.Otis’ parents and my parents were born and raised in Michigan. My mother has postcards written to her parents by Otis Walter Sr. If only I had put a little more effort into locating Otis Jr, perhaps I could have had a nice chat with him. He sounds like an interesting person. I miss him even though I never met him.
Vaughn Hagen says:
June 13, 2013
Otis was a business associate of mine and was a good friend of my Dad’s, Vern Hagen. Dad, too, enjoyed the discussion group of which I had the pleasure of attending once . I always enjoyed Otis’ wry (or dry) sense of humor and his realistic outlook on life. Otis, you will be missed.
Merle Glen Weaver says:
June 13, 2013
I lived in Pittsburgh, meeting Otis when I was twenty-eight. We became friends and stayed friends until I left the city, moving to Phoenix, Arizona at the age of thirty. Otis presented me with a copy of his newly released book, “Thinking and Speaking.”. He dedicated it to me on the first page, stating, “I hope you will waste no time reading this” He was a delightful person to know. I bid that he rest in peace.