JAMES PENDLETON III

PENDLETON, James D. III, of Midlothian, passed away on December 29, 2009 after a long illness. Mr. Pendleton was born December 12, 1930 at Fort Bragg, N.C., the only son of Lottie A. and Major James D. Pendleton II. He is survived by his loving wife, Lynda Myles, who has kept him smiling. He is also survived by his three daughters, Lelia Pendleton of Richmond and her husband, Stuart Halloran, Eve Hubbard of Greensboro, N.C. and her husband, Jim, and Caroline Pendleton-Hillmar of Richmond and her husband, Gregg; and his two granddaughters, Rachael and Margaret Hillmar; as well as his first wife, Catharine Kirby. He will be missed greatly for his humor, grace, and incredible spirit. Mr. Pendleton had a lifelong pursuit of excellence in literature, education, and music. He was also an avid pilot. He taught at VCU for 34 years, and was Dean of Students, Chairman of Freshman English, and Professor of English until his retirement in 1992. He was recognized as the founding playwright of the Creative Writing section at VCU. In addition to writing, teaching, and raising a family, he was baritone soloist wherever he lived, singing in such venues as Town Hall, Carnegie Hall, and with the Chicago Symphony with such leading conductors as Margaret Hillis and Fritz Reiner. Before settling at VCU, his wide interests and talents led him to directing a jazz band, playing lead trumpet, teaching Small Arms at the Ft. Benning Infantry School, being a disk jockey, a roving reporter, newspaper editor, choir director, and pilot of light planes. But his real heart was in his writing. He wrote 10 plays for stage and many television, radio, and film scripts. He was published in many prestigious newspapers and magazines. He wrote book reviews and novels and won numerous awards including the Virginia Governor's Screenwriting Award and The Eugene O'Neill New Drama for Television Award. He grew up in Fayetteville, N.C., graduating from high school in 1948, graduated from Davidson College in 1952, where he honed his writing skills for the Davidson literary magazine. Mr. Pendleton completed his Master's degree in 1958 at the University of North Carolina in English. He loved to travel and see the world, teaching himself German and Greek for his travels in those countries. Upon retirement, he traveled to Central America and Nicaragua, curious as to what was happening in those countries and the impact the United States had there. What he found there prompted him to write the play "Sanctuary," about political refugees in the U.S., and his final book, Last Night in Managua. For fun and research, he traveled up the Amazon, to Greece, Turkey, Spain, Mexico, Venice, and Bali. The family will receive friends at the Central Chapel of Bennett Funeral Home, 3215 Cutshaw Avenue, on Friday, January 1, from 1 to 5 p.m. Funeral services will be held on Saturday, January 2, at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 2245 Huguenot Trail, Powhatan, Va. at 1 pm. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Amnesty International, Planned Parenthood, St. Luke's Episcopal Church or Witness for Peace.


This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.