AASP Primary Records Program

AASP Newsletter 27(4): p. 10, 1994.

ALFRED RICHARD LOEBLICH, JR.
1914-1994

It is with great regret that I report the death, on September 9, 1994, of Al Loeblich, Jr., a pioneer in micropaleontology and palynology. Al was born in Birmingham, Alabama on August 15, 1914 but soon moved to Kansas City, Missouri. He received the BS and MS degrees from the University of Oklahoma and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1941. He taught at Tulane University for two years before reporting for military duty in 1942 where he served as a captain in the U.S. Army Field Artillery in the Pacific theater. Upon returning to the U.S. following the end of World War II in 1946, Al accepted a position as Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology and Paleobotany at the United States Museum in Washington, D.C.

After spending several summers collecting Bryosoa in North America and never getting to work on them, Al returned to studying foraminifera. Following the death of Joseph Cushman, Al moved the Cushman Collection to Washington, D.C. and spent more than a year curating it. Al was also instrumental in organizing the Cushman Foundation for Foraminifera Research and started the Contributions of the Cushman Foundation, serving as editor for two years. During 1953-1954 Al was sent by the Smithsonian Institution to Europe to collect samples and study the foraminifera collections in many of Europe's museums. This was to serve as the background for Al and Helen's work on the Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology. In addition to this work, Al also collaborated with various micropaleontologists on a planktonic foraminifera project which led to the publication of the now classic USNM Bulletin 275.

In 1957 Al joined Chevron Oil Field Research Company, heading their micropaleontological program. During his tenure at Chevron, Al organized short courses on a wide variety of microfossil groups, and published numerous papers. Upon his retirement from Chevron he served as an adjunct professor at UCLA for about 10 years where he continued publishing, teaching graduate courses, directing theses on acritarchs and dinoflagellates, as well as collaborating with and sponsoring post-doctoral students. After retiring from UCLA, Al still remained active in micropaleontology.

Al was a Fellow of the Geological Society of America, a recipient of the Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research, the Paleontological Society Medal, and the Raymond C. Moore Medal of the Society of Sedimentary Geology.

Al will be remembered, not only for his contributions to the field of micropaleontolgy, but as a unique individual who was never afraid to speak his mind. He was generous with his time and resources, but also very helpful and encouraging. He was especially helpful to students and more that willing to help them succeed. Those who had the opportunity to get to know Al came to appreciate his homesty, humor, hard work, and extreme dedication to the field of paleontology and education.

A festschrift to Al and Helen is in the final stages of preparation. While he did not live to see the final result, he was aware of it. It is hoped that it will be published nest year and serve as a tribute to one of the giants on micropaleontology.

Reed Wicander
Dept. of Geology
Central Michigan University
Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859