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BORN

1927

DIED

2015

Lee Salisbury Obituary

Lee H. Salisbury died peacefully on Sunday, March 8, 2015, on Bainbridge Island, Washington, exiting the stage for the last time at age 87, with family present. Born June 6, 1927, to Thomas and Mary Salisbury, his early life was spent in New York City. After a brief stint in technical college, Lee joined the U.S. Navy in 1943, serving in Guam and Shanghai. 
On returning to New York City at the end of WWII, he attended New York University on the GI Bill, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in '49 followed by a master's from Columbia University in 1950.
Lee spent the next seven years immersed in the world of N.Y.C. theater and radio, an experience that shaped his vocation and passions for the next seven decades. Moving west in early 1954 to direct a play for the California Parks Department, Lee met and married Lesley Voute Hampton, a dancer and violinist choreographing the production.
They were both teaching in the San Carlos School District when lured to Fairbanks by Lesley's sister, Druska Schaible, then Dean of Women and head of the Biology Department at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Though Lee's primary teaching responsibilities at UAF were in speech and radio, he immediately started directing plays (his first love) on campus. Those first productions were staged in the gym - juggling rehearsals and performances around basketball games and ROTC practices.
In 1969, a new Fine Arts Complex was built, providing Lee with his first real theater on campus, renamed The Lee H. Salisbury Theater in his honor in 1993. Lee also served for a decade as a commissioner of the Alaska Broadcast Commission, helping establish the public radio system and UAF's station, KUAC-FM. 
In 2007, Lee moved to Bainbridge Island, Washington, to be close to his family. He continued to do play readings, meet with a group of movie buffs, enjoy many improv performances at Bainbridge Performing Arts, and spend time with his kids and grandkids. 
Lee was preceded in death by his wife, Lesley, and is survived by his children, Lisa, Tom, Lex, Druska; their sister Katie Egowa Beals; grandchildren Alex Salisbury, Grace and Griffin Salisbury, Neva Coats Beals and Lawrence W. Beals; and great-grandchildren Nick and Jack Coats. 
He is remembered by his family, hundreds of students, and a multitude of Alaskan colleagues as a fine actor, stellar director, affable storyteller, the voice of Alaska One, L. Southwick, the makeup artist; master of accents, and a pretty damned good singer and dancer. His kids grew up thinking everyone read plays at the dinner table and had parties where show tunes on the piano and impromptu performances were the norm. 
Please see www.cookfamilyfuneralhome.com for full obituary and sign Lee's guestbook. There will be a memorial celebration for family and friends in Poulsbo, Washington, in April and in Fairbanks in August. 
For information please contact [email protected] or [email protected].
Please visit www.legacy.com/obituaries/newsminer to sign an online guest book.

Published by Daily News-Miner on Apr. 5, 2015.
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Memories and Condolences
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Thank you for teaching me how to become an effective actor Lee. (1984-85). Thank you for your sense of humor and youthful ebullience and care. I will never forget your notes on my performance as Jim in The Glass Menagerie. Very helpful.

John cleary

School

March 31, 2022

A great man has passed away. I was greatly saddened to learn of the death of Lee through a UAF publication.

He was my mentor an friend when I attended UAF from 1962 to 1966. I started working at KUAC in 1962, but Lee found out about my high school drama experience and drafted me.

I worked on many plays at the University with him which in those days were held in Schaible Hall.

I cannot begin to give him as much credit as he deserves for setting my path to a career in broadcasting (radio).

His cheerful personality will be sorely missed by all who knew him. My deepest sympathy to his family -- Lisa, Tom, Lex, Druska, and Katie. A truly great man has passed.

Sandy Kirkland

April 28, 2015

Lee Salisbury was a legend in Fairbanks. I first met him with Laughing Stock Theater Group soon after moving to Alaska.Fairbanks and UAF were blessed to have had his talent and guidance for many years

Miss Milli The Alabama Filly

April 16, 2015

Great mentor to me! Loved working with him on The Glass Menagerie (which we took to the American College Theatre Festival in Oregon) and Guys and Dolls in 1984.

John Cleary

April 15, 2015

My favorite memory of Lee was his rendition of "Have Some Madeira My Dear". I still chuckle when I think of it.

Bruth George

April 8, 2015

A great man has passed, but his legacy lives on in the hearts and minds of his family, his students, his colleagues, and the community he served for so long.

Robyn Russell

April 7, 2015

I am glad I got to work with Lee during my time at the UAF Theatre Department.

Alex Beaudreault

April 6, 2015

S. M.

April 5, 2015

Our thoughts are with the Lee Salisbury family. You can all take joy in knowing what a legacy he has left. Our family has many wonderful memories with the Salisburys. He will never be forgotten.

Sincerely, Dick and Jo Scott, Manhattan, NY

April 5, 2015

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