Julian Palley

September 16, 1925 - December 20, 2014 Julian Palley, an original U.C. Irvine faculty member and one-time Chair of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, passed away on December 20, 2014, at the age of 89. Fondly known to his friends as Jerry, he kept up his intellectual curiosity, humor and love of language, despite heart disease and the loss of his wife of 64 years, Shirley Palley, the winter before. Jerry joined the UCI faculty in 1966, when the campus was little more than a few buildings around the quad. He would go on to teach there for more than 40 years, even after he went Emeritus. He translated works of Spanish and Latin American literature and published poetry, while also editing the California State Poetry Quarterly. His publications include his own poetry, Family Portraits (1994), Pictures at an Exhibition (1989), Bestiary (1987) and Spinoza's Stone (1976), collections of other poets (De la Vigilia Fertil (1996) and Meditation on the Threshold (1989)), and works of literary criticism, including The Ambiguous Mirror: Dreams in Spanish Literature (1983). Born in 1925 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, to Anna and Max Palley, Jerry moved west to attend the University of Colorado, studied at UNAM (Mexico City) and was awarded a PhD from the University of New Mexico. He taught at Arizona State, Rutgers and the University of Oregon before joining the UCI faculty. He ran a UC education abroad program in Mexico City from 1974 to 1976. Jerry never went a day without meditating before dinner. He played classical and folk guitar, often singing along gracefully. He loved to travel, especially to India, and was fond of Indian food. Shirley and he had wonderful adventures there and in Europe and Mexico. His older and younger brothers Reese and Norm Palley survive him, as do his four sons, David, Brant, Mark and Dan Palley, seven grandchildren, Dana Wall, Marta Palley, Amanda Reynoso-Palley, Dylan Palley, Gabriel Reynoso-Palley, Evan Palley, and Nicholas Palley, and his beloved dog, Sasha. A celebration of his life will be held on Saturday, March 7, 2015, at 2:00 p.m., at the University Hills Community Center, 1083 California Ave., on the UCI campus. At his request, the family will spread his ashes in the Sonora Desert. In lieu of flowers, donations in his name may be made to the Orange County Humane Society or an animal rescue organization of your choosing.