Section A · Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, November 6, 1997
Professor refuses to slow down
Professor James Seaver stands in a room that houses his phonograph and radio collection. Many of the rooms in the Seaver home hold parts of collections, from old opera posters to albums and tapes. The Seaves live in a stately brick house on Louisiana Street. Photo by Angie Kuhn/KANSAN.
James Seaver active in teaching, sports
By Angie Kuhn Special to the Kansan
James Seaver is not only a professor emeritus of history at the University of Kansas, he also is a world-renowned opera expert, a tennis champion,the
At age 79, Seaver has shiny white hair and a smile that touches his clear blue eyes.
"I've really taken to these," he said. "I think I'm addicted to the darn things."
uncle of famous pitcher Tom Seaver and longtime buddies with people as untouchable as actor Robert Stack.
He gave a throaty chuckle when he sat down in an embroidered antique chair and eyed the coffee and cinnamon graham crackers on the table in front of him.
With a bachelor's degree in medieval history from Stanford University and his Ph.D. in ancient history from Cornell University, Seaver is well-respected in his field. In 1947, he came to Kansas and introduced a course in Near Eastern history, which he has been teaching ever since.
"He really knows so much about ancient Egyptian history, which is what I'm interested in," said Linda Yahn, Bonner Springs senior. "I've visited with him several times, and he doesn't just know the facts. He is really knowledgeable about the history and credibility of the authors."
Seaver is not only well respected by his students but also is revered by his peers.
"Seaver has raised generations of scholars, who will raise generations of scholars long after he's gone," said Jeff Gardner, a graduate teaching assistant in the Western Civilization program. "He's immortal, at least in my opinion. He taught the head of the classics department, who is retired now. What a phenomenal life."
Seaver is involved in his teachings and often travels the world to see the sights of antiquity.
"We had nifty adventures on those trips," Seaver said with a grin.
When Seaver says "we," he is referring to him and Virginia, his wife of 57 years whom he met at Stanford. They first met at a football game.
"I saw this vision there of Virginia. She was surrounded by boys, and they were pouring beer on her," he said. "I thought to myself, 'She must be a pretty good sport... maybe I should get to know her.'"
The two went to San Francisco for their first date.
Since then, Seaver has become an opera expert. He is the host of a weekly radio program called "Opera is My Hobby" on KANU.
"To the opera, of course," Seaver said. "I knew one of the baritones through a friend of mine. I tried to impress her by taking her backstage to meet him."
He has led the program, which airs at 7 p.m. Fridays, since the station began broadcasting in 1952. The program is carried by a number of stations around the country.
Seaver has been invited to appear on several national radio broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera House in New York and often judges regional contests of the Metropolitan Opera Auditions.
He and Virginia have been to many operatic productions around the world, and they have an extensive album collection.
"We don't think private collections so unique should be kept to ourselves." Seaver said.
The Seavers donated a large part of their collection to the University in 1979.
The 25,000 records, which began the KU Archive of Sound, are now in the basement of Murphy Hall.
Seaver said he often thought of the first time he and his wife went into San Francisco and the plan he arranged with his best friend.
Seaver's friend, Robert Stack, won an Emmy Award for his portrayal as Eliot Ness in "The
Untouchables" TV series. Stack also is the host of "Unsolved Mysteries." The two have been friends since their early school days when they attended Los Angeles High School.
"Bob was valedictorian then. We are still really good friends," Seaver said.
Seaver also fondly remembers another life-long friend from high school-former U.S. tennis champion Bobby Riggs.
"I never was able to beat him in singles, but if he had a bad partner, I could beat him," Seaver said. "I started playing tennis when I was 7 because that's when my father bought us a tennis court at the house."
After a few years and a lot of practice, Seaver became
"We always just keep going. It's fun that way. 'You should never look back; someone might be following you.' Satchel Paige said that. That's what we believe, Virginia and I."
captain of the L.A. High tennis team. Riggs and Seaver were opponents through high school and then played tennis circuits throughout Southern California.
pionship for his age group.
promise for his group. "We beat a team from Kansas City, and then finally one from Fort Worth, which meant we qualified for Nationals," he said.
James
Seaver coached the Kansas tennis team in 1947 48, when the University was in the Big Seven.
"We won the championship, and I retired after that season," he said.
Last May, Seaver went to Tucson, Ariz., with his doubles partner to play in the national cham-
Seaver
professor emeritus of history
In addition to opera, tennis,
teaching and travel, Seaver
enjoys spending time with and
telling stories about his family.
He especially is proud of one of his nephews, former major league pitcher Tom Seaver, who was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992.
"Tom is a great guy. Of course, we went to Cooperstown to see him inducted into the Hall of Fame," Seaver said proudly.
The Seavers now live in Lawrence, travel extensively and keep in touch with their family.
This semester Seaver is travel-
a meeting and lecturing in classes as a guest speaker. Next semester, he will be teaching a class in the department of history called "The Golden Age of Greece."
Even though their children are grown and they are both officially retired, the Seavers are not yet ready to slow down.
"We always just keep going. It's fun that way," he said. "You should look back; someone might be following you." Satchel Paige said that. That's what we believe, Virginia and I."
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