Deceased July 18, 2006
In Memory
Jud died peacefully in his sleep on July l8, 2006, six weeks after attending our 55th Reunion, succumbing to his multiple sclerosis and heart disease. With his passing we have lost a searching mind, his droll self-awareness and entertaining sense of humor, as well as a devotedly loyal classmate.
Jud came to Amherst from Monroe High in Rochester, NY. At Amherst he played football, was an active member of Theta Delta Chi, and majored in English, in reverse priority. He went on to distinguish himself at Harvard Law School, earning a place on the Law Review and graduating magna cum laude. After a year as a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, he served three years as an officer in the Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps, finally settling into the litigation department of the Dewey Ballentine firm on Wall Street where he soon became a partner.
Jud wrote of his years in defending Pfizer from anti-trust accusations, “I convinced myself that I was on the side of the angels not only because I thought and still think that the charges were groundless but also because I thought that, if Pfizer and other similar companies were left alone to pursue their research, they might come up with a cure for cancer or some other dread disease.” Perhaps, he mused, he helped make it possible for Pfizer’s discovery of Viagra.
Jud and Chesley “Lee” Kahmann, an accomplished pianist and composer, were married in l960. Her professional prospects were outstanding and Jud left Dewey Ballentine and the practice of law in l982 to promote Lee’s career and music under the name of Orbiting Clef Productions. After several years he did resume practicing law in Morristown and from home but never gave up his promotional activities until shortly before his death.
Lee and Jud have two sons, Ames and Brockett, each talented professional musicians, of whom Jud was very proud.
Jud was an active community leader, having served for some time on the Summit, NJ, Zoning Board of Adjustments, as chair of the local United Way, and as president of the Summit High School Band Parents’ Association and Summit Friends of Music.
Amherst College was high on Jud’s list of loyalties. He was the moving influence in instituting the annual class dinners in New York City some 35 years ago, which he attended faithfully through this April. He visited Amherst regularly at Reunions or Homecomings. He was program chair of our 50th Reunion.
Jud listed his hobbies as “golf, jogging, reading and complaining.” Of his golf, he asked, “Why can’t I hit every golf shot as well as my last good one?” Of his jogging in a 10K race, Jud stated that, “Despite my great form, I lost. I did not come in last, because there were a few old ladies and 3-year-olds in the race.” Among his “complaints”—the loss of fraternities at Amherst, the “lack of co-education in our day” and “Why do I keep finding more questions and fewer answers?”—such as “How anyone can consider himself or herself as college educated who has not been subjected to a solid core curriculum like our ‘new’ one.” Jud’s complaining was always accompanied by a twinkle in his eye and some self-deprecating humor.
Jud was a special genius and a very special friend. His presence, his warmth, and humor will be greatly missed.
John Kirkpatrick ’51 and Skip Hunziker ’51