Robert Lawley Wright

Bob Wright became a born-again Okie on November 10, 1938, mischievous from the outset and destined for a life of adventure. The second of three children to Horace and Edythe (Lawley) Wright in Henryetta, Oklahoma, Bob was like most kids and loved to play in the dirt, as he was fascinated by the out doors and the nature of things. Full of mischief, he and his brother pariticipated in their share of shenanigans. One such adventure at an early age was close to home as he decided to sit down on top of a red anthill to watch the little critters come and go. Within a few minutes of digging into the dirt mound, Bob was stung so many times ‘where the sun don’t shine’ that he ran screaming to his Mom who tried to sooth the pain with various herbal remedies, but to no avail. That convinced the kid early on that a future in entomology might not be a good idea either.

Yet, Bob was determined to keep digging in the dirt, and kept up his desire to construct mud brick structures, earth sheltered hideaways, and even an underground sanctuary near OSU, a few of his many fascinations early in life. His future in architecture was beginning to take root some thought. In fact, he and his older brother Jim spent an entire summer digging themselves a private teenage retreat into some dirt landfills just north of the OSU football stadium, a wasteland at the time, perfect for creative stimulation and staying out of trouble for the most part.

Fourth Grade was more than exciting in that Bob’s sister Mary was born, another unexpected addition to the family he overheard someone say. Being ten years older and rather enthralled about that remarkable event, he immediately applied his creative instincts to designing and building a dollhouse for her, complete with custom designed furniture and a Mansard roof. Just another step along the way to an inevitable career in Architecture as it turned out.

Earning money for college began in earnest about that time as Bob started delivering newspapers year round and mowing lawns in the summer. Neighbor ladies even asked him to weed their gardens in spite of his previous criminal record with such. He thrived on his second chance to dig up growies and move them elsewhere. Anything with a little excitement and even money earned continued to be a challenge worth pursuing.

Fifth grade was pretty much of a blur, except for memories of his teacher, Ms Lawhorn, who told Bob that his favorite painting of mountains he had done in class, all in purple tones, wasn’t very realistic. Bob realized some 50 years later when teaching at Arizona that the mountains out there are rather purple. What a relief, and not a day too soon.

A competitive urge occurred in Sixth Grade as Bob recalls it. He played basketball, football, ran track, high jumped, played baseball and stirred up a lot of dust doing so. Baseball wasn’t his favorite sport however, as his coach discovered he only had one pitch in his arsenal. That was straight ahead as hard as he could throw to his catcher named Dale, a more versatile teammate. Unfortunately, Dale ended up going to prison later in life for several offenses, while Bob remained on the loose.

Bob capped off his Eugene Field Elementary School days by being asked to design the 6th Grade Graduation Announcement, no doubt the beginnings of an illustrious graphic design career later in life he figured. He had already gained notoriety for his colorful drawings of Native Americans sitting around campfires, and bouquets of flowers in vases. More and more visual things began to occupy his interest, especially when wearing glasses.

His High School years can best be described by his driving around aimlessly many nights in his Dad’s Pontiac, trying to pick up chicks, then going back home empty handed to work on Trigonometry homework, due the next morning. When things were going better, he played drums in a country and western band that frequented dimly lit cowboy bars on the edge of town where the beer was free, even though everyone in the band was underage. That almost revived Bob’s musical career, until Elvis came on the scene about then.

Upon entering Oklahoma A&M College in 1957, Bob’s interest in education was rekindled. Architecture became his major focus and it looked like a real future was just five years down the road. He even had a part time job working for the University Research Foundation as a draftsman, drawing wiring diagrams for rockets to be sent into the atmosphere and recording stuff. Things were looking up for Bob.

His college days were punctuated by so many late hours and sleepless nights that notes weren’t recorded along the way, just design projects in drawing form turned in. Most were on time. His parents provided the ultimate bed and breakfast experience during those five years.

Surviving all of the above and finally graduating from OSU, Bob headed off to the University of Illinois to pursue a Masters degree in Architecture. He also considered going to Art School and becoming a painter, but eventually getting a job and earning a living caused reality to get in the way of that impulse. So Architecture it was, from that point on.

Graduate School in Architecture proved to be a life-changing experience, as most of his fellow students were older than he and many were registered architects from all over the U.S. and around the world. Life became ever more challenging all of a sudden. He decided to just “suck it up and make the best of it,” in spite of his Okie accent and limited experience.

Little did Bob know what would follow while he was in grad school, as the Cuban Missile Crisis occurred and the Vietnam War was becoming a greater concern. He applied to the Peace Corps and Officer Candidate School in the Navy, just in case graduate school didn’t lead to something better. Those were tense times and Bob only had a one-year deferment from military service.

It was 1963. Bob was to graduate in May but extended his graduate study until August at Illinois. By then it was up for grabs as to what he would do next. He had been accepted into the Peace Corps and was told he would be going to Columbia to design and build low-income housing out of mud bricks, reminiscent of his summers as a kid growing up. He was also accepted into the Navy’s Officer Candidate School in Engineering and may have ended up building bamboo bridges in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam.

But like most things in life, unexpected things tend to happen, for better or worse. Bob, for whatever reason, was offered a teaching position as a design instructor in Architecture at the University of Illinois for the 1963-64 academic year, much to his and his parents’ surprise. Another deferment from military service followed, and the Peace Corps assignment, or service in Vietnam would have to wait.

Without realizing it at the time, his 45-year teaching career in Architecture had begun.

The following three summers he traveled to Europe, where his Ecole des Beaux Arts’ teacher from Paris, Alec Notaras, kept describing all those girls along the French Riviera. Travel became inevitable. Rough seas in the north Atlantic on the eight-day crossing caused him to think twice about how adventuresome he had become, but there were several cute girls on board, much improving the experience.

Bob pre-purchased a Vespa scooter in advance of his trip from a dealer in Champaign-Urbana. It was to be ready to pick up at a Vespa Store in Paris when he arrived. When the day came to pick it up, the storeowner looked at Bob’s papers, shrugged, and mumbled something about Americans. Bob uttered something like Merci, and walked back to his hotel, then made plans to go to London the next day.

As things turned out, the British are more eager to sell Vespas to Americans, and a new deal was done. Bob was quickly back on the road and aboard a ferry to cross the English Channel into Belgium. Then to Germany, Switzerland and Italy, the little two-wheeled marvel ran as advertised and took him to places he had only dreamed about. His first summer abroad ended as he returned his Vespa to the English motorcycle shop to be sold on consignment to the highest bidder. His summer in Europe had ended but the start of a new kind of love affair had begun.

Assuming his one-year’s teaching contract at Illinois was all that he had going for him, he was enticed by S. Wayne Williams, his former design studio teacher, to accept an offer from the University of Arizona to teach in Tucson the following year. Bob accepted and thrived there for two years before being lured back to Illinois to continue his teaching adventure.

It is reported that Bob’s dating career peaked out early on as a young professor when he went to his architectural student’s weekend party at Illinois and was smitten by a female English major, eight years younger than he, who asked him to dance. His first response though, based upon the dance classes he despised as a kid, was “No thank you, I can’t, my feet are flat.”

But she persisted; a band was playing, so what the hell he thought. He’d just met this interesting girl, Jacqueline Gyory, who had a funny last name. She was probably a student, but where the heck was she from he wondered? They began learning to dance with each other that night … and to make a long story short, have been working on it ever since. She turned out to be the flirtatious, vivacious and loving French speaking European girl he had just spent three summers in Europe looking for. She wasn’t even wearing a bikini and sunning on a beach in the South of France.

Jacquie, Bob’s new soul mate, was born in Germany to Hungarian parents and grew up in Paris before coming to the U.S. at age six. Bob always liked younger women. What luck! It was better than winning the Illinois Lottery. They were married in December of 1968, in Urbana, Illinois. Life suddenly became better, for Bob at least.

What followed while Bob was teaching at Illinois was a mixed blessing. He was suddenly asked late in 1969 to teach in Versailles, France, for the U. of I. Architecture Program Abroad. Having no previous foreign language training, he and Jacquie headed to France anyway in January of 1970 where his wife felt more at home than Bob. It didn’t take long before they preferred Paris to Champaign-Urbana and hesitated to return to the U.S. two and a half years later. Bob had become friends with Escargot, Steak-Frites and Chateauneuf du Pape. The times had gotten even better.

There are few written records of their stay in France other than Bob’s endless postcards to family and friends. But hundreds of slides also tucked away in metal boxes now will confirm that their travels all over Europe in a VW camper bus was the next best thing to being Okie-Hungarian Gypsies. Dancing together in campgrounds all over Europe as Gypsies often do seemed to help develop that skill for Bob further, but that may have just been a result of the wine he consumed.

Returning to Illinois and becoming eligible for a Sabbatical, Bob took a year off to redesign and reconstruct a small run-down house they had purchased after he and Jacquie were married. Unlimited redesign concepts and numerous study models were done, analyzed, and debated as to what to do with the disgusting place, although it did have a nice view into Crystal Lake Park.

Things went quite well with the deconstruction of everything inside the dwelling, leaving only the chimney remaining. The old heating system was long gone, plus most plumbing and electrical connections with the outside world had been removed; it was now or never to get it done before winter weather arrived. Added to that, another more important impetus was that Bob and Jacquie’s first child was on the way much to their surprise, due in March. It was already November, and time was running out. Luckily, power got restored along with a new heating system on New Year’s Eve, 1974, thanks in large part to Michael Jackson, not the Michael Jackson, but a registered electrician and a former student of Bob’s. Everyone celebrated, including the unborn we suspect.

Sure enough, Nicole Elise Wright became a U.S. citizen on March 10th, 1975. Bob’s sabbatical had culminated in something special after all. Now it was time to finish the remodeling. Plus take a trip to analyze Pueblo Indian Villages, the subject of his previously agreed to sabbatical.

With a mostly remodeled residence and Nicole in his lap, Bob often enjoyed sitting with his young daughter to relax outdoors on summer evenings … to study the stars from the newly built cantilevered deck he’d constructed to overlook the park. That justified all the hard labor and empty beer cans that had piled up underneath as support. Uplifting actually described his architectural creations and his love of a growing family.

While the remodeling continued at a less furious pace over the next two years, Jacquie surprised almost everyone by giving birth to Michael in the dead of winter, 1977. In fact, it was 20 degrees below zero, all traffic in the city was officially shut down, yet Mike was discreetly hurried home from the hospital without being stopped by police. His Dad’s luck may have rubbed off on him already. Mom survived the ordeal almost intact as well.

Michael’s early views of the world while peering up from his crib in a very small white room with a window painted orange, was of snow falling and icicles hanging down. His view of nature and his caring Mom had a calming effect on him, as construction on the house continued at a more furious pace. Remodeling continued as classical music played. Little did anyone know what was in the works next.

Later that summer, Bob was enticed to teach at Georgia Tech, and packed everything up to move his family there. Another house to remodel was just a few months away. Opportunity knocked a mere three years later, and he seemed destined to return to the scene of his childhood mischief in Stillwater. Everyone being part gypsy by now, Jacquie, Nicole and Michael piled into the 1970 VW bus for Bob’s next adventure, to teach at OSU in his hometown.

After more architectural renovations and restorations of their Tyler Avenue black barn, the Wrights found their Okie groove. Oklahoma was a bit of a cultural and temperate shock for Jacquie, but they found ways to liven things up by attending Beaux Arts balls at the School of Architecture department, and occasional trips to ball games with a bag of peanuts. Colorful kids’ toys were all over their home, and broken parts were everywhere. Family life was beginning to challenge Bob’s attempt to keep everything neat and orderly, every designer’s dream for a universe one has some control over, even an understanding of had almost vanished. Nicole and Michael, gypsies no more, were beginning to set their own agendas and needing their own spaces.

With Bob’s preoccupation with teaching in Architecture, while girl scouts, boy scouts, orchestra, band, tennis, golf, and summer camping trips occupied the kids, Jacquie added to her own personal challenges by returning to graduate school and completing another Master’s Degree in foreign language education at OSU, where she also taught French courses in the Foreign Language Department. She went on to teach French and English at Glencoe High School, then became the High School French teacher at Stillwater High School … until she was more than happy to retire.

What followed for the next 37 years can’t be discussed here in too much detail, as lawsuits may still be pending. Bob and Jacquie miraculously found a way to return to France, purchasing a tiny house in a picturesque hill town in southern France, Vinsobres. They lovingly dubbed the house their “Petit Chateau” with a grin, and embarked on yet another renovation with the help of a lively Irishman, Veryan Page, capable of executing nearly any project dreamed up. Together, they renovated the mortared stone house, hundreds of years old, and abutting the local winery. What luck!

Each fall they returned to enjoy the finer things of life – the weekly markets, colorful rolling hills and vineyards, wines, cheeses, olives, and fresh veggies. Jacquie’s culinary skills were put to good use, as they say, as Bob reaped the rewards of being hitched to quite a chef.

Like most things in life, unexpected things tend to happen for better or worse. And while Bob’s time with us ended unexpectedly and too soon, his real life story is a remarkable one that we will cherish forever.

Bob Wright’s Real Life Story was written by Bob Wright and edited by Nicole, Michael and Jacquie Wright.

With Love. Bob Jacquie Nicole and Michael