U. mourns noted author, prof

English Professor Jerre Mangione, whose writing drew on his Italian-American heritage, was remembered as a sweet and gentle man during a memorial service Tuesday night attended by about 50 friends and colleagues in the Van Pelt Library. He died of heart failure August 16 at the age of 89. Mangione --Ewho is survived by his wife Patricia, a brother and two sisters -- was born in 1909 in Rochester, N.Y., to Sicilian immigrants. He attended Syracuse University and after graduating in 1931, worked for Time magazine. He joined Penn in 1961 as chairperson of the Freshman Writing Program. He became a full professor in 1968 and later headed the Creative Writing Program. Mangione retired from the University in 1978. Mangione expressed his Italian-American heritage in many of his literary works. His memoir and first book, Mount Allegro, was published in 1943 and dealt with life in a Sicilian ghetto in his hometown. He wrote his 11th and final work, La Storia: Five Centuries of the Italian American Experience, in 1992. With the book, he wanted to obliterate the stereotypes that people held of Italy and address the issues faced by immigrants in America. The Center for Italian Studies presented the service along with the College of Arts and Sciences. The center, which encourages an interdisciplinary, cross-departmental approach to Italian civilization and culture, was created in 1978. As the center's first honorary director, Mangione served as the advisor for undergraduate majors and minors in Italian Studies. English Professor Stuart Curran described Mangione as "always first and foremost himself." Curran added that it was hard describing Mangione with anything but Italian terms, explaining how the Italian word suave described Mangione's sweet disposition and gentility. Fellow English Professor Victoria Kirkham discussed how Mangione had made her feel welcome when she first came to Penn 26 years ago. She related some excerpts from one of Mangione's books entitled Life Sentences, describing the collection as "witty mini-stories." After laughter from the audience, Kirkham added, "Jerre would like to have us laugh a bit." She also noted that he was "fun to be with." Anthony Bruno -- a writer and professor at the Community College of Philadelphia who had close ties to Mangione -- said the best way to honor him was by reading his work because of Mangione's deep regard and love for his writings. Several other educators and writers read their favorite parts of Mangione's books. Italy's general consul, Anna Brigante Colonna told the crowd that she regretted never meeting Mangione. Evelyn Marcantonio, a 1946 Penn alumna, came to the memorial because she always felt a connection to the Italian Department. Being the child of an immigrant, she said, "I could identify with everything [Mangione] said." The memorial ended with part of an unfinished documentary entitled, From Mount Allegro to La Storia, which is being created to document Mangione's work and life.