Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1985 - 15

tion. Chuck quietly said, "Skip to the
last page." Here the article championed
the "quality of life" as the prime goal
and stated the importance of a doctor
you could relate to, home care, and a
strong support system of people around
you. Chuck, though he could not bring

In March the USITT and TTFL had
back to back meetings in ew York.
Chuck, a founding member of the
USITT, received this year's Founders
award and despite his casual acceptance, he was very pleased and placed it
near his bed where he could see it. Sev-

1985 Recipienr of rhe
USITT Founders A ward

He knew a lot abour New York, but not roo much aboUl the resr of rhe world. [n
1964 he and [ wem out ro Flushing Meadow to light rhe Unisphere at rhe World's
Fair. Those big, stainless steel depicrions of landmasses on the earth's surface were
just so much mewl to Chuck. "Aim it at that big one down there." "You mean
Ausrralia?" "Wharever. Glad I've gor you along on this job, Warfel, somebody's
got to know what's getting lir."
- William B. Warfel

himself to verbalize it, was letting me
know how he felt and he set the tone for
the rest of his life.
By ovember he needed constant
care and he came to live with Sonny and
me in our apartment. I want to think
that his last months were not unhappy
ones. As he lay on our sofa listening to
his favorite vocalists sing Rodgers and
Hart, Gershwin, and Cole Porter he
smiled, and it became a broad grin
when he heard his true love- Lena
Horne! Each day he waited for his favorite TV program. Can you imagine
Chuck Levy talking back to Kermit the
Frog and other Sesame Street characters? Well, he did-and as gleefully as
any other four year old.
When you thought that Chuck had
tuned out the conversation he would
make some terse remark to let you
know that he was very much a parr of
what was happening. He was a master
of conveying much by saying little. He
would lay back, taking it all in, waiting
-poised-to jump in with a two or
three word comment summarizing it all
as if to say, " 'nough said." He left me
a legacy of one-liners suitable for all
occasions.
Chuck was amazed by the extent of
his friendships, from ew York City to
the West Coast, from Canada to South
America, from Europe to Japan.
Cards, letters, phone calls and visits
cheered him up and spurred him on.
Friends who wanted him to stay involved encouraged him to use his mind
and his skill and to do some work at
home. It wa at this time that he accepted an offer to become associated
with Colorrran as a consultant, using
the apartment as his office and lab.

eral of his theatre and lighting friends
visited Chuck giving him a sense of still
being a part of that world. Many of
them echoed Bob Lorelli's observation
that Chuck, himself a lighting designer,
listened to these people for input into
whatever control system or luminaire
he was working on. His honesty, integrity and calm efficiency brought Chuck
trust from his colleagues. "If Chuck
Levy says it will work, it will work,"
was a constant refrain I heard from
Chuck's peers.
Few people have the chance to know
how many people were touched by their
presence-Chuck knew! When a colleague rold him how much Chuck
helped him and how much he contributed to the theatre, Chuck said simply,
"I know," and later told me that he
knew his worth-and he meant it. In a
letter to a magazine relating his expertise in projections and special effects,
Chuck wrote, "There is even an apoc-

sultant who modestly devised solution
to every impossible problem for hundreds of designers who remain indebted
to him, to his work, and to his devotion
to our industry."
Over the months we watched Chuck
mellow in his ability to accept the affection and attentions of others. From his
dear friend ancy who came by several
times a week to show her care and concern, from Bob Lorelli who kept his
mind alert and memories of sailing
sharp, from Bob Kushner, whose outrageous humor made Chuck laugh,
from Frank and Bob DeVerra of Four
Star who gave their support all through
his illness, from Dr. Fetell who treated
Chuck as a man and not a statistic,
from Sonny who patiently encouraged
Chuck to do and say everything in his
own good time, giving him hope of a
future, and from so many others,
Chuck was able ro have that "quality of
life" he had so wanted.
In a letter ro the IES concerning
Stanley McCandless, Chuck wrote, "I
am sure it is not necessary to repeat all
of Mac's achievements as an artist, inventor, and innovator, but I do want to
stress his achievements as a shining
example of that seemingly vanishing
breed-a gentleman and a teacher."
Chuck could have written these words
about himself. On hearing those words
applied to him, Chuck would first raise

Last nighr I was making some slides for a producrion, and [ realized that Chuck
raughr me about slides. [was leaving an air space at rhe rop, because he said the
film would srill be drying, and the moisrure needed ro ger out. Every class [ reach
and every lighting project [ underrake carries a lirtle bir of Chuck with ir.
- William B. Warfel

ryphal story that for years, 'Call Chuck
Levy' was an acceptable answer to a
question on projection lenses on the
Lighting Designers Union exam."
Chuck's quiet, calm demeanor in tackling problems in the theatre became his
"trademark" and he completed each
job without trumpets or fanfare. This
year's USITT Founders Award to
Chuck sums it all up: "The Institute
further values Chuck's lifetime of service to the lighting industry as the con-

an eyebrow and then smile shyly accepting the notion that he was, indeed,
like Mac, one of a vanishing breed-a
gentle man who touched so many of us
by his simple presence amd we will miss
him.
We fulfilled Chuck's wish to be at
"home" when he died-with that love
that surrounded him during his illness.
This fine man died as he had liveduncomplaining, with quiet dignity.
-Kelly Sonnenfeld

USITT / Fall 1985/Thealre Design & Technology

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