Sterling professor emeritus Vincent Scully, who began teaching at Yale, his alma mater, in 1947,  is stepping away from the lectern and turning his attention to writing and research. Divya Subhramanyam tells us:

His lectures are legendary; stories of Scully’s electric presence abound in the lore of Yale and the architecture community.

He is known for his passion and the intense, performance-like quality of his delivery. He is rarely still, his voice rising and falling to fill the room. He uses a pointer the size of a broomstick, and once ripped a hole in the screen—though he simply blazed past the mishap and even worked it into the lecture.

Another tale recounts the time that Scully became so carried away by his lecture on Frank Lloyd Wright that he fell off the stage. (Later, Scully told the Yale Alumni Magazine that it was merely an ill-timed jump.) The inimitable Scully clambered back up, bleeding slightly, to cheers from his students.

What do you remember best about Scully’s lectures?  Share a story or, simply, your reaction to the news in the comments section.

(Vincent Scully and his wife, Catherine Lynn. Photo: Yale Bulletin)

YALE DAILY NEWS