David Guralnik

[Victoria Neufeldt]

Amen!

The spring issue of the DSNA newsletter (much delayed for a number of
reasons -- some my own fault -- and now I'm glad!) will include an
appreciation of David Guralnik.   I would like to include some personal
reminiscences and other statements.  Please send or phone comments to me as
soon as possible.  (Frank, may I use your comments in the newsletter?)

Victoria
vneufeldt at m-w.com
Merriam-Webster, Inc. P.O. Box 281
Springfield, MA 01102
Tel: 413-734-3134  ext 124
Fax: 413-827-7262

> -----Original Message-----
> From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU]On Behalf
> Of Frank Abate
> Sent: Monday, May 22, 2000 2:34 PM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: David Guralnik
>
>
> ADS members (and others),
>
> I just heard the very sad news that David Guralnik passed away on
> Friday, May 19.  There is an obit in today's NY Times, and also
> on the AP wire.
>
> I did not know David well, but had come to greatly respect his
> work before I even started in lexicography.  I believe that he
> was one of the best definers of his time -- crystal-clear,
> concise, accurate, and sensitive to the nuances of the language.
> Webster's New World Dictionaries are as solid as they are largely
> thanks to the foundation laid by David and his staff from the
> early 1950s through the 1970s.
>
> As all who had the pleasure to meet him know, David was also a
> warm, generous, and kind human being, who was good to be around.
> We will miss him greatly, as will the world of lexicography.
>
> Frank Abate
>