In Memoriam: Prof. Kees Bolle (1927-2012)

The Department reports with sadness the passing of distinguished emeritus professor of religion Kees Bolle.  Prof. Bolle died on October 17 at his home in Biddiford Maine, following two strokes and a long period of suffering. 
He came to our department from Brown University in 1966  and took retirement in 1991.
While at UCLA, Prof. Bolle created the interdepartmental major in the study of religion, mentored many graduate students, and published many books, including The Freedom of Man in Myth (1968, reprinted 2010), The Persistence of Religion (1971), The Bhagavadgita: A New Translation (1979), Secrecy in Religions (1987), and The Enticement of Religion (2002).
He was born in Holland and earned his Ph.D. under Mircea Eliade at the University of Chicago.
He is survived by his wife, Dr. Sara Denning Bolle, and two children from a previous marriage.
A memorial event is being planned during the upcoming annual meeting of the American Academy
of Religion to be held in Chicago in late November.