DR. NORMAN S. TALNER

1925 - 2017

Dr. Norman S. Talner died peacefully on August 17, 2017, from Alzheimer's disease, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, one month shy of his 92nd birthday. Dr. Talner was a Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at Yale University, where he had a distinguished career spanning over 30 years, including 22 years as Director of Pediatric Cardiology. Dr. Talner, his wife Trudy, and three daughters lived in Orange from 1960 to 1992. Norman Talner lived in New Rochelle, NY, as a child, where his father opened a jewelry store, which still exists and bears the family name. He entered the University of Michigan in 1943 under the Navy V-12 program, and earned his college and medical degrees there in four years. After serving as a Captain in the Air Force during the Korean War, in 1960 Dr. Talner joined the faculty of the Yale School of Medicine, where he engaged in research, taught and practiced medicine, first as an Assistant Professor, and then as a Professor, until 1992. The School's Pediatric Cardiology library and conference room are named for him. In 1992, he joined the faculty at Duke University as a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, a post he held until retiring in 2007 with emeritus status. Dr. Talner was a dedicated teacher, physician, and scientist, with a life-long passion for helping mend the broken hearts of children. Multiple generations of family members and friends far and wide remember Dr. Talner for his love of books, sports, music, and travel, his interest in birds, his sense of humor, and his commitment to caring. His first wife, Trudy, a former school social worker in Madison and North Haven, died in 2002; they had been married for 52 years at the time of her death. He is survived by his wife, Frances, who he married in 2004, his brother Dr. Lee Talner of La Jolla, CA, his three daughters Nancy Talner of Bothell WA, Ellen Zuerndorfer of Clearwater FL, and Lauren Spiliotes and her husband Nicholas of Bethesda MD, six grandchildren, and many other family members, friends, neighbors, and colleagues, who remember him for his life well-lived. A memorial service will be held at later date. Donations may be made to the American Heart Association, the Yale University Department of Pediatrics, the Alzheimer's Foundation of America, the ALS Foundation, or any other charity of choice.