Orville L. Chapman

Chapman, Orville L.
Born on June 26, 1932, in New London, Connecticut, died on January 22, 2004 in Santa Monica, California. He received his undergraduate degree at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, with a double major in Chemistry and English, and his Ph.D. from Cornell University in 1957, the year he began his teaching and research career in chemistry at Iowa State University. In 1974 Orville Chapman moved to UCLA. In 1989 he became Associate Dean for Education Innovation at UCLA, a position that he held until his death. Professor Chapman received many national and international awards, including the Pure Chemistry Award and the Arthur C. Cope Medal from the American Chemical Society, the Havinga Medal from the Netherlands, and the Texas Instruments Foundation Prize. He was elected to the National Academy of Science in 1974. Internationally recognized as a brilliant, creative scholar and an intellectual leader in various fields of endeavor, he was a trailblazer and innovator in photochemistry, matrix isolation spectroscopy, reaction intermediates, chemical communication, the mechanism of olfactory perception, polymers, and materials design. In 1991, he brought national recognition to UCLA with the Computer World Smithsonian Institute Award for the best use of computers in education and academia. His wife, Susan; his mother, Mabel; his two sons, Kevin and Kenneth; and three grandsons, David, Daniel, and Timothy survive him. He will be deeply missed by family, friends, colleagues, and former students. A memorial service followed by a reception will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2004, at 2:30 p.m. at Westwood Presbyterian Church, 10822 Wilshire Boulevard, Westwood, California. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory can be made to "UCLA Foundation/Orville Chapman" and mailed to the Chair's Office, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1569. Gates, Kingsley & Gates Moeller Murphy, Santa Monica (310)395-9988