Résumé

Employee, Mansfield Electric Company, Mansfield, OH, c. 1930.

Lighting Director, Federal Theater Project, San Francisco, CA, c. 1936-1939. His obituary published by the United States Institute for Theatre Technology said of this first position: "He married Hildegard Hilt after graduating from Wittenberg and moved to California where Dr. Izenour met Hallie Flanagan, the national director of the Federal Theater. He became the lighting director of the project and later designed the theatre at the Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco in 1939." (See USITT.org, "In Memoriam: George C. Izenour," published 05/2007, accessed 08/28/2024. This obituary was written by members of George Izenour Associates.)

Rockefeller Foundation Fellow / Researcher, Yale University, School of Drama, New Haven, CT, 1939-1941. The USITT.org biography indicated of his obtaining a Rockefeller Foundation grant: "In San Francisco, he crossed paths with David H. Stevens of the Rockefeller Foundation who, after seeing Dr. Izenour's work, convinced him to apply for a grant. Dr. [sic] Izenour was made a Fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation 10 days after the House Un-American Activities Committee declared all of the members of the Federal Theater Communists, effectively closing the Federal Theater. He landed at Yale, with his Rockefeller grant, where he developed the Electro-Mechanical Laboratory in an abandoned squash court at the Yale School of Drama Annex." (See USITT.org, "In Memoriam: George C. Izenour," published 05/2007, accessed 08/28/2024.) His theatre research yielded important inventions such as the Thyratron Tube dimmer system (marketed by Century Lighting as the "Century-Izenour System,"), a synchronized winch system, and what would total 25 other patents. His obituary elaborated on some of these patents: "Dr. Izenour contributed many inventions to the technology of the theatre including; the basic inverse polarized rectifier electronic dimming circuit, the electronic multi-preset lighting control system, the synchronous winch system, articulated acoustical sub-structures, and related analogue and digital control systems." He also pioneered the concept of the transformable theatre, first explored at the Loeb Drama Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA.

Antisubmarine warfare researcher, US government laboratory, Long Island, NY, c. 1942-1945. He developed electronic countermeasures for explosive proximity fuses. Izenour may have worked for the US Army Air Forces' 1st Bomber Command, with headquarters at Mitchel Field, Uniondale, NY. (See Joseph F. McCloskey, "U.S. Operations Research in World War II," Operations Research, vol. 35, no. 6, 11-12/1987, p. 914.)

Principal, George C. Izenour Associates, Incorporated, New Haven, CT, 1959-2007. The firm had an address of 16 Flying Point Road, Stony Creek , CT, in 1999.

Teaching

Professor, Yale University, School of Drama, c. 1946-1967. Izenour authored many technical articles on theatre design in professional journals and wrote three books: Theater Design (1977), Theater Technology (1988) and Roofed Theaters of Classical Antiquity (1992).

Professor Emeritus and Technology Director Emeritus, Yale University, School of Drama, Electro Mechanical Laboratory, late 1960s-2007.

Professional Activities

Member, American Society for the Advancement of Science, Washington, DC.

Member, American Institute of Electrical Engineers / Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, New York, NY.

Member, Acoustical Society of America, Melville, NY.

Member, National Council of Acoustical Consultants, Indianapolis, IN.

Member, United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Liverpool, NY.

Professional Awards

Recipient, Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship, Yale University, New Haven, CT, c. 1939-1942.

Recipient, Ford Foundation Fellowship.

Recipient, Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.

Appointment, Royal Society, Benjamin Franklin Fellow, London, England.

Recipient, Rodgers and Hammerstein Prize, 1960.

Recipient, United States Institute for Theatre Technology, USITT Award, Liverpool, NY, 1975.

Recipient, Theatre Library Association, George Freely Award, New York, NY, 1977.

Recipient, American Theatre Association, Distinguished Service Award, New York, NY, 1978.

Archives

Penn State University Libraries maintains the George C. Izenour Architectural Drawings Collection (02357). As noted by the library's web site, "The collection contains drafts, final drawings, blueprints, and sepia prints on paper, mylar, and architectural vellum for theaters and performing arts centers designed by Izenour for communities and universities in Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Venezuela." (See Penn State University Libraries.edu, "George C. Izenour architectural drawings," accessed 08/28/2024.) Additionally, Penn State also has research documents related to the completion of his books Theater Design and Roofed Theaters of Classical Antiquity. These were donated by Izenour in 1998.

High School / College

Of his early education his obituary published by the USITT.org stated: "Dr. Izenour's mother taught him English and Latin and his father history and mathematics before he started his formal education at 6. His interest in theatre and music started early. "I would have liked to have been an opera singer but I didn't have the talent," he once said. He appeared in all of the Mansfield Senior High School plays. He painted the scenery for them and became increasingly interested in the technical aspects of theatre. Dr. Izenour excelled in high school and attended Wittenberg College in Springfield, Ohio. His mother, being an ardent Lutheran, sent him to Wittenberg hoping he would become a preacher." (See USITT.org, "In Memoriam: George C. Izenour," published 05/2007, accessed 08/28/2024.)

Graduate, Mansfield High School, Mansfield, OH, c. 1930. Izenour belonged to the school's science club in year four and the social science club in years 2 and 4. He was very involved in dramatics and music in high school. He was a member of the glee club in all four years of high school, the high school's insensitive minstrelsy group in years 3 and 4, Red Masque in years 3 and 4, Double quartet all years, Quartet, years 3 and 4. and in class plays during years 3 and 4.. The yearbook noted: "His hobby--The stage." (See the Mansfield High School Manhigan Yearbook, 1930, p. 30.) The Red Masque Club put on one-act plays and was affiliated with the Mansfield High School's dramatic department. (See "Annals of the Dramatic Department, 1932-1933," Mansfield High School Manhigan Yearbook, 1933, n.p.)

A.B., Wittenberg College, Springfield, OH, 1934. (See Wittenberg College, The Wittenberger Yearbook, 1934, p. 29.) In 1932, Izenour was a member of Wittenberg's fencing team. He was also a member of the Phi Mu Delta Fraternity. (See Wittenberg College, The Wittenberger Yearbook, 1932, p. 177.)

M.S., Physics, Wittenberg College, Springfield, OH, c. 1935. His master's degree in physics would be useful for his later career: "His thesis was the embodiment of what would later become the first electronic theatre lighting dimming system at Yale." (See USITT.org, "In Memoriam: George C. Izenour," published 05/2007, accessed 08/28/2024.)

College Awards

Member, Theta Alpha Phi, Wittenberg College, Springfield, OH, 1932. He was a member of Theta Alpha Phi, the honorary dramatics fraternity at Wittenberg. (See Wittenberg College, The Wittenberger Yearbook, 1932, p. 146.)

Relocation

George Charles Izenour was born to Charles S. Izenour and Wilhelmina Freseman in New Brighton, PA, on 07/24/1912. The family resided in PA until about 1918, when they moved to Mansfield, OH, in the northeast section of the state, nearby to the industrial cities of Cleveland and Pittsburgh. During the late 19th century, Mansfield was sited at the confluence of three main rail lines, and because of this and its proximity to steel manufacturing plants it became a manufacturing center for many items, but most prominently for the production of pumps, stoves and farm implements. (See Timothy Brian McKee, Richland County History.com, "Scrap and Stoves in Mansfield: 1942," published 08/06/2019, accessed 08/28/2024.)

At age seven in 1920, George lived with his parents and two brothers at 348 West 3rd Street in Mansfield, OH. His maternal grandmother Mary E. Falkenhagen (aka "Mary Welsh" and "Mary Freseman" from previous marriages, born c. 11/1866 in PA) and step-grandfather, George W. Smith (born 02/06/1942 in PA-d. 02/06/1942 in Los Angeles County, CA), also lived in the same house. Like his father Charles, George Smith also worked as a laborer in a local manufacturing plant in 1920. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1920; Census Place: Mansfield Ward 1, Richland, Ohio; Roll: T625_1430; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 194, accessed 08/28/2024.) Charles moved his family to 200 Lind Avenue by 1922 and, in 1924, the family's address was listed as 362 West 3rd Street. (See Mansfield, Ohio, City Directory, 1922, p. 262 and Mansfield, Ohio, 1924-1925 Directory, p. 270,)

The Izenours lived in a two-story, wood-frame house on the southeast corner of Helen Avenue (#110) and Heineman Boulevard in Mansfield between at least 1926 and 1934. (See Mansfield, Ohio, 1926-1927 Directory, p. 334 and Burch Directory Company's Mansfield, Ohio, City Directory, 1934, p. 248.) As noted in the 1930 US Census, his parents owned this house, valued at approximately $10,000, in line with house prices of immediate neighbors. George Izenour's younger brothers and grandparents continued to live with them. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1930; Census Place: Madison, Richland, Ohio; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 0017; FHL microfilm: 2341597, accessed 08/28/2024.) At some point during the Depression, his father lost his business, the Mansfield Electric Company, requiring George to fund Wittenberg College tuition and room and board on his own. (See USITT.org, "In Memoriam: George C. Izenour," published 05/2007, accessed 08/28/2024.)

By 10/1940, Izenour resided at 78 Ellsworth Avenue in New Haven, CT. He worked at Yale University on a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Connecticut, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 198, accessed 08/28/2024.) He remained here in 1941. (See New Haven, Connecticut, City Directory, 1941, p. 581.)

In 1959, Izenour and his family had a house at 10 Alston Avenue in New Haven. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; NAI Number: 2848504; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787 - 2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number: A3998; NARA Roll Number: 188, accessed 08/28/2024.)

In 1993, he resided (and worked) at 16 Flying Point Road in Branford, CT. He lived here until 2002. Following the death of Hildegard, he moved into the Cathedral Village retirement community in Philadelphia.

The designer died in Philadelphia, PA, at the age of 94.

Parents

His mother was Wilhelmina Freseman (born 05/12/1891 in Beaver Falls, PA-d. 12/08/1971 in Cypress, PA). She apparently had fine language skills, as she taught her son English and Latin early in life.

George's father was Charles Stevens Izenour, Sr., (born 1889 in Pittsburgh, PA-d. 08/19/1975 in Cypress, PA). They married on 06/28/1911 in Beaver County, PA. (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. Pennsylvania, U.S., Marriages, 1852-1968 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016, accessed 08/28/2024.)

Charles clearly had an aptitude for constructing and maintaining mechanical systems, as he held a variety of industrial jobs during his lifetime. Importantly for his son George, he learned a great deal about electricity in his various roles. George's birth certificate recorded that we worked as a plumber in 1912. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission; Harrisburg, PA, USA; Pennsylvania (State). Birth Certificates, 1906-1913; Box Number: 484; Certificate Number Range: 105151-108000, accessed 08/28/2024.) The 1920 US Census indicated that Charles Izenour worked as a "master mechanic" for a farm machinery manufacturer, the Roderick Lean Manufacturing Company (known earlier as the "Lean Harrow Works"), situated on Park Avenue East. (See Richland Source.com, "Then & Now: The Lean Harrow Works 1903," published 03/14/2017, accessed 08/28/2024 and Timothy Brian McKee, Richland County History.com, "Mansfield's First Harvest of Genius: Aultman & Taylor," published 06/24/2019, accessed 08/28/2024.) Charles worked as a foreman for the Lean Manufacturing Company between 1920 and 1922, at least. (See Mansfield, Ohio, City Directory, 1920, p. 253 and Mansfield, Ohio, City Directory, 1922, p. 262.)

By 1925 or 1926, however, Charles had left Lean Manufacturing and begun to manage an electrical supply shop, the Mansfield Electrical Company, in the Madison Township section of Mansfield. Charles operated this shop selling electrical supplies during much of George's adolescence. The 1930 US Census indicated that George, at age 17, also worked in his father's electrical supply shop, experience imparting to him useful knowledge of electrical principles. After the war, he applied this knowledge to the creation of electrical light dimming systems for theatrical uses, for which he received multiple patents. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1930; Census Place: Madison, Richland, Ohio; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 0017; FHL microfilm: 2341597, accessed 08/28/2024.) In 1942, Charles Izenour worked for North American Aviation (NAA) in Inglewood, Los Angeles, CA, likely to assist in the war effort, and resided at 11917 Wagner Street in Culver City, CA.

The theatre designer and engineer had two brothers: Frank Milton Izenour (born 10/13/1913 in New Brighton, PA-d. 12/05/1999 in MD) and Charles S. Izenour, Jr., (born 07/05/1917 in New Brighton, PA-d. 05/28/1996 in FL).

Frank Izenour wed Billie Wilson Boettcher (born 09/16/1915-d. 12/20/2013) on 12/10/1938 in Brattleboro, VT. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Vermont State Archives and Records Administration; Montpelier, Vermont, accessed 08/28/2024.) Frank became a career US Army officer, rising to the rank of Major General. He served in World War II and Korea, receiving a Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, and Bronze Star among other military honors.

Charles, Jr., also served in the military during World War II, Korea and Vietnam, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the US Air Force. He married Elizabeth Christine Lien (born 01/17/1914-d. 11/01/2006) in CA in 1941. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California Department of Public Health, courtesy of www.vitalsearch-worldwide.com. Digital Images, accessed 08/28/2024.)

Spouse

Izenour wed Hildegard Erna Hilt (born 09/27/1911 in Kenmore, NY-d. 07/20/2002 in Branford, CT), whom he had met while they both studied at Wittenberg College in Springfield, OH. She earned a B.S. in History from Wittenberg in 1933. (See Wittenberg College, The Wittenberger Yearbook, 1933, p. 36.)

Children

Hildegard and George had a son, Steven Izenour (born 07/16/1940 in New Haven, CT-d. 08/21/2001 in VT), who would become a renowned architect.

Biographical Notes

His World War II draft registration card of 10/16/1940 indicated that Izenour was Caucasian with a light complexion, blue eyes and blonde hair. He stood 6-feet, 2-inches tall and weighed 190 pounds. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Connecticut, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 198, accessed 08/28/2024.)

SSN: 301094295.

To confuse matters, another man named George C. Izenour (born 08/26/1893 in PA and d. 01/23/1964 in CA), about 20 yearsl older, also was born in PA and resided in OH at about the same time as the theatre designer. He worked in retail sales jobs during his lifetime.

In 1959, Izenour spent 180 days in Brazil, arriving on 02/03/1959 and leaving by early 07/1959. He stayed at the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro. On 07/05/1959, Izenour returned to New York, NY, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil aboard Varig Flight #850. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; NAI Number: 2848504; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787 - 2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number: A3998; NARA Roll Number: 188, accessed 08/28/2024.)