Wells, Terry H.

Lambs Terry Wells and Andrew Bauer

Terry H. Wells (August 11, 1930-August 14, 2022) was a retired professor, historian, and curator.

He was elected to The Lambs in 1969. After time away, he rejoined the Club in 2005. He has served as curator of The Lambs’s Foundation art collection, and created its first catalog. He served on the Lambs’ Council.

His career was as a professor of technical theatre. He grew up in Evanston, Illinois. He attended college at St. John’s (Annapolis) where he did the set and lights for Oedipus, Androcles and the Lion, and Volpone. He received his BA in Theatre from the University of Wisconsin and his MA from the University of Illinois.

He taught at the University of Miami (where former Shepherd Bruce Brown was among his students), North Carolina College at Durham; at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and Penn State.

He became an out-of-town Lamb, joined Skirpan Lighting Control first as salesman, then as the Manager of East Coast Operations; Assistant to the President. Upon leaving Skirpan he became a Consultant/Lighting Designer. His clients have included CBS, ABC, and NBC.

In 2005 he discovered and rejoined The Lambs. Terry Wells died August 13, 2022, at The Actors Home. The following is his obituary as provided by his niece:

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Terry Hutchison Wells of Highland, NY and New York City, died of complications from pneumonia at the CareOne LTACH in Westwood, New Jersey on Sunday, August 14, 2022.

Terry was a respected stage, set, sound and lighting designer and a professor of technical theatre. Terry was born in Evanston, Illinois on August 11, 1930. He attended St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland, where he did the set and lights for OedipusAndrocles and the Lion, and Volpone. He received his Bachelor of Science in Speech from the University of Wisconsin and his Master of Arts from the University of Illinois.  He served in the Army during the Korean War and was stationed at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, as a specialist in electronics research from 1952 to 1954. It was during his time at Redstone that Terry did pyrotechnic work for the Huntsville Little Theatre. Eventually, he specialized in pyrotechnic work, working with theatres across the Nation.

Terry worked with many professional companies, including the road company of “Mister Roberts”—starring Henry Fonda—where he was a sound technician; the New York City Ballet; and the New York City Opera Company, where he was the supervisor of scenery. He taught at the University of Miami, North Carolina College at Durham (now North Carolina Central University,) Michigan State University, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and Penn State. He guest lectured at UCLA and the United States Institute for Theatre Technology.

Later, Terry joined Skirpan Lighting Control Corporation as a salesperson. He quickly advanced to become the Manager of East Coast Operations of Skirpan and Assistant to the President. Upon leaving Skirpan, he opened a consultancy as a Lighting Designer. His clients included ABC, CBS, and NBC.

Terry was elected to The Lambs in 1969. He served as curator of The Lambs Foundation art collection, creating the Foundation’s first catalog. He also served on the Lambs Council.

A railroad enthusiast born from a childhood spent traveling the world with his family by train, Terry was a proud member of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, Inc. and its New York Chapter, the New York Railroad Enthusiasts, the New York Central System Historical Society, and the National Association of Railroad Passengers. He traveled regularly across the United States by train, well past his 89th birthday.

He is survived by his wife of 56 years actress, stage manager, and costumer Ann (Folke) Wells of Highland, NY, and his nephew and niece-in-law, Todd and Natascha (Dea) Burdeinei of Chicago, IL.

Terry is preceded in death by his father James Hutchison Wells and his mother Dorothy “Dottie” (Harcourt) Wells of Evanston, IL; his brother Alden Harcourt Wells of Lake Villa, IL; his sister-in-law, Lois Jean Berg of Chicago, IL; his first wife and friend Mary Jane (Bernardy) Wells Sander of NYC, NY; and his partner, Virginia “Gini” Dustin of New York City.

He is interred at Homewood Cemetery in Pittsburgh, PA, in the Hutchison family plot next to his father and paternal grandparents.