Deceased November 3, 2021
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In Memory
Mal Brown was born in Beirut, Lebanon, to missionary doctors; grew up in Buffalo, N.Y.; prepared for Amherst at Nichols School; and majored in philosophy. A member of Phi Alpha Psi, the House Management Committee and the Philosophy Club, he also played squash, soccer and hockey.
Earning his doctorate from Columbia, Mal taught philosophy at several colleges and then for 17 years at Brooklyn College (CUNY), continuing his life’s path as a Renaissance man.
He was a pioneer in integrating computers in humanities research, a scholar on Plato, the publisher of a concordance on Euclid and others, while also pursuing mathematics research.
Taking early retirement, he and his new wife, Anne Larsen, moved to the Catskills, where they opened a health food store, farmed (keeping 60 beehives), developed a small hydroelectric facility and, using its power, founded a community public radio station.
After several years, they moved to Hull, Mass., where Mal championed wind power, helped to establish two wind turbines and spread the word to other communities. He made sundials, sang in a choir and taught himself to whittle wood and to play the recorder. Ahead of his times in recycling and driving electric cars, he became a social justice activist, while returning to scholarly work, researching and visiting scholars and ancient manuscripts in Europe.
With a razor-sharp mind, Mal was playful and sly, taking pleasure in wordplay and gentle teasing. Not shy to express his love, he approached all people with kindness, interest and respect.
Malcolm died on Nov. 3 at home in Hull. He leaves his wife, Anne; his first wife, Carol, and their son, Duncan, and daughter, Lydia; his second wife, Virginia, and their daughter, Melissa (Kurt); his brother, Norm ’52; and two grandchildren. He was predeceased by son Greg, daughter Charlotte and a granddaughter.
Anne Larsen and George Edmonds ’53