HAROLD N. SHAPIRO

He is completely unforgettable!

Harold was a joy of a professor. He had a degree of intellectual aliveness that is not at all common, even among the elite.

Daniel Stork, on behalf of my family, I thank you so much for this post and for sharing your special memory of my father! That comment was "so him." He would have loved that you remembered him with such fondness!

While surfing the Internet in a nostalgic mood tonight, I was dismayed to learn that Harold Shapiro died over 3 years ago, and I had not known. I found the guest book, whose most recent entry was by my friend and Courant Institute office mate Homer Walker, and felt compelled to add my thoughts, however belated. Professor Shapiro was by far my favorite teacher in graduate school. His classes were giddily engaging, funny, and terrifying mathematical adventures, clearly presented and...

Harold Shapiro's teaching style was unique among Courant faculty. My memories of a course with him are still vivid after nearly 50 years. My sincere condolences to his family and friends.

It is only now, July 2015, in a family discussion concerning old times and old friends that Harold, Ruth and family came up. Thank G-d for google. My father, Sol Abramowitz and Uncle Naftaly, were good friends with him since the days of "cheder" in the late 1920s. They walked together to school so they could defend themselves against the antisemitic bullies. This trio could handle themselves. Would love to communicate with his children, my contemporaries. Sol and Naftaly are long gone but...

I remember my father every day. He was a huge man, both figuratively and literally. He was never small, even into his 90's. His considerable physical presence, irrepressible intellect along with his booming voice shook many a classroom as well as our house growing up...on a regular basis.

He used to refer to his mathematics professor at Princeton, Emil Artin, as "the great man". It was a rarity for my dad to express unadulterated admiration for anyone. He was, among other things...

I met him when he visited Concordia University where his student Dr Anand was my colleague. I spent the afternoon
showing him a bit of Montreal. He had things to say that were fascinating. About Hua, about the oil business, about poverty, and his advice to me about some professional issues still guides me.
May his family be comforted among the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.