- Date Of Birth: October 1, 1925
- Date Of Death: December 26, 2008
- State: Arizona
As his friends and family will tell you, Cliff White never did anything halfway.
Known in town as one-half of Mr. and Mrs. Flagstaff Theater, White was a perfectionist to a fault, whether it was teaching speech and drama to NAU students, directing a play or instructing young church acolytes on how to carry an altar candle. “You do not have a building on the NAU campus named for you for doing things only part or halfway,” said an admirer several years ago at White’s 80th birthday party.
So it wasn’t surprising that, despite a history of serious heart problems, White was shoveling his walkway Friday when he suffered a heart attack and died. He was 83.
“I watched in awe at the way he put together major campus productions and was such an excellent teacher, yet he was also a kind and gentle person,” recalled Eugene Hughes, who became president of Northern Arizona University in 1979 and is now retired. “When you put that all together, I thought we really ought to honor him.”
White arrived in Flagstaff in 1968 with his wife, Doris Harper White, and their children to become chair of NAU’s speech and drama department. He had been a pioneer in educational radio and TV in Michigan, where he also taught high school after earning a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from Wayne State University.
“Cliff likely taught every course in the curriculum,” said Dan Julien, a retired professor of speech communication who helped recruit White to NAU. “Broadcasting was his greatest area of expertise, but he also developed the speech therapy program.”
White also directed dozens of student productions at NAU while his wife was founding Theatrikos, Flagstaff’s community theater. For many years, they staged a production of “Love Letters” at Valentine’s Day as a fundraiser for the theater.
“Together, they really were Mr. and Mrs. Theater of Flagstaff,” Hughes said.
Richard Jesswein, a Theatrikos director and board member, said Cliff White acted in several Theatrikos plays and advised him on others. A Navy medic in both World War II and the Korean conflict, White was especially pleased when Theatrikos staged the wartime drama “Biloxi Blues.”
“He came in with a reputation as a tough, serious theater guy, but all those young guys — ages 16 to 21 — were just thrilled to learn from him and hear stories from someone who had actually been there.”
Jesswein said White’s classical training in theater was evident — he insisted on clear enunciation and voice projection. But he was also open to new plays and trends in staging, directing the avant-garde drama “Communicating Doors” at the age of 77 and mounting the first NAU production of the controversial play “Equus.”
“I had complete trust in Cliff that he would do it as tastefully as you can do such a play, and he didn’t let me down,” Hughes recalled.
Bob Yowell, a professor of theater at NAU, said he will remember White for his tremendous sense of humor and his selfless devotion to his students and the department. White visited former theater education students in their classrooms throughout the region and recently donated his entire book collection to the department.
“Yes, he was controlling, but it was never for his own personal interest,” Yowell said.
Clifford E. White was born Oct. 1, 1925, in Flint, Mich., to Theron and Marguerite White. He was married to Doris Harper White in 1951.
In addition to his work with Theatrikos, White was a founder of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. He was an active member of First Congregational Church of Flagstaff.
In addition to his wife, Doris Harper White, he is survived by two sons, Kevin White (Pam) of Glendale and Kenneth White of Flagstaff; daughter Karen McFall (Robert) of Flagstaff; sister Louise Whiting of Michigan; seven grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
