Eugene J. Corman Obituary (1926

Eugene J. Corman, of Fullerton, California passed away in Provo, Utah on January 19, 2023, from causes incident to being 96. Gene was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 20, 1926, to Marie Mueller Corman (nee Gampfer) and Eugene Corman. He is the oldest of three children: his sister Bette is eighteen months younger, and his brother, Bob, was ten years younger. Gene attended St. George Elementary School and graduated from Roger Bacon High School in Cincinnati. He joined the Army on March 25, 1944, training in the use and repair of RADAR, which was a new technology then. After his discharge from the Army in July 1946, and his mother’s passing in March of 1947, Gene transferred to San Francisco, California, with the Eureka-Williams Company. In San Francisco, Gene earned an Associate Degree in Business Administration from Golden Gate College and began working as an accountant, first for Tidewater Oil Company, then as a Certified Public Accountant for Muncy, McPherson & Company, where he met his life-long friend, Noel Pearman. In San Francisco, he also met and eventually began dating Bess Talmage (Bess Loraine Gardner Talmage), who had moved there from Springville, Utah, to work for Bank of America. They married on September 2, 1954. Their daughter, Catherine Talmage Corman, was born in San Francisco in 1955. In 1958, the family moved to San Jose, California, where Gene set up a private practice as a Certified Public Accountant. He also attended Santa Clara University, earning a BS in Commerce in 1961, and a Master of Business Administration in 1963. At Santa Clara, his mentor and friend, John Pagani, gave him the opportunity to teach. Gene found his calling in teaching, and soon became a Lecturer in Business Administration, then an Assistant Professor in Business Administration, both at Santa Clara University. John Pagani encouraged Gene to enter a doctoral program so that he could earn the necessary degree for a career in university teaching. After spending a couple of years in Scottsdale, Arizona, to see if the climate was better for Bess’ severe Rheumatoid Arthritis, the Cormans moved in 1966 to Fullerton, California. Gene was one of the early members of the Accounting Department in the School of Business Administration and Economics, at California State College, Fullerton. The school later became California State University, Fullerton. At the same time, he entered the Doctoral Program in Business Administration at the University of Southern California. He both taught full time and attended school full time until he graduated from USC in 1971, with a Doctorate in Business Administration. His doctoral dissertation, “Incorporation as a Method for Divesting the Non-Professional Functions of Accountancy,” was well-received and influential in the profession. Gene was a thoughtful and innovative teacher, whose courses, though rigorous, were popular with students. Throughout his career, he served on department, college, and university committees, and taught Continuing Professional Education courses for the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. He was frequently invited to speak to campus, local, and regional chapters of various Accounting societies, and was active in professional organizations. Gene also has a number of articles published in professional journals. He retired from CSUF in 1991. In his retirement, Gene took up writing poetry and short stories. He won several awards for entries in the Cincinnati Poetry Contest, and he left for his family his memoirs, which take the form of prose vignettes. Bess passed away in 1996. Gene continued to live in their home in Fullerton, California, until 2022, when he moved to Provo, Utah to live with his daughter, son-in-law, and grandson. Gene was a loving and beloved father, grandfather, brother, uncle, friend, and neighbor. He was unswervingly loyal and supportive in all of those roles and as a husband and son. He was fun and funny. Though his passing leaves a vacancy no one can fill, he gave us lifetimes of loving acts and happy memories. Gene is survived by his daughter, Catherine, son-in-law, Joe, and grandson, Will Parry of Provo, Utah; his sister, Bette Dellecave of Cincinnati, Ohio, who gave him three generations of nieces and nephews; and his sister-in-law, Betsy Corman, of Florida. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, January 26, 2023 at the Berg Drawing Room Chapel, 185 East Center Street, Provo, Utah. He will be laid to rest in the Spanish Fork City Cemetery, in Spanish Fork, Utah.