Carol serling biography

Carolyn Kramer Serling ’50, widow of screen writer and Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling (also Class of ), died January 9, , at her home in Pacific Palisades, CA. She was 90 years old.

Carol was a longtime champion of Antioch College, and her ties to Antioch ran very deep. Two of Carol&#;s great-grandfathers were Antioch notables, as was her grandfather. Carol was related to Horace Mann, Antioch’s first president, as a first cousin three times removed. Carol’s great-grandfather, Dr. George Caldwell, was professor of chemistry at Antioch and was later the first professor hired by Cornell University. His wife, Rebecca Stanley Wilmarth, was a first cousin to Horace Mann and taught at Antioch as well ().

Another of Carol&#;s great-grandfathers, Edward Orton Sr began at Antioch in as a professor of Natural History. In Professor Orton became President of Antioch College. The following year he was named President and a professor of geology at Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, which became Ohio State University, so Professor Orton was effectively the first President of Ohio State University.

Carol was born February 3, , in Columbus, OH, the daughter of Warren A. and Ann Caldwell Kramer. After her mother’s unexpected death when Carol was 18 months old, Carol was raised by her grandparents, Frank and Louise Orton Caldwell of Columbus, OH, who established the Orton Caldwell Scholarship at Antioch. Frank Caldwell had served as a Trustee for Antioch Carol attended The Ohio State University Laboratory School in Columbus and was graduated from MacDuffie School in Springfield, Massachusetts.

During her freshman year at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, OH, she met Rod Serling, one of the returning World War II veterans attending the College. They were married two years later, on July 31, Carol graduated from Antioch in with a BA in elementary education and psychology. Following graduation, they moved

Carolyn Kramer Serling

Pacific Palisades, CA - Carolyn Kramer Serling, 90, widow of screen writer and Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling, died January 9, , at her home in Pacific Palisades, California.

Carol was born February 3, , in Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Warren A. and Ann Caldwell Kramer. After her mother's unexpected death when Carol was 18 months old, Carol was raised by her grandparents, Frank and Louise Orton Caldwell of Columbus, Ohio. She attended The Ohio State University Laboratory School in Columbus and was graduated from MacDuffie School in Springfield, Massachusetts. During her freshman year at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, she met Rod Serling, one of the returning World War II veterans attending the college. They were married two years later, on July 31,, and completed college together in before moving to Cincinnati, where Rod worked for a local radio station. Two years later, the couple decided Rod would devote himself full-time to writing, and they moved to Westport, Connecticut, to be near the center of live television activity in New York City. In the mids, the couple and their two young daughters moved to Pacific Palisades, California.

In California, Carol was a volunteer for the Fair Housing Council, the PTA, the suicide prevention center, and served in various roles for the League of Women Voters. For 30 years, she was the volunteer toy and book buyer at Santa Monica Hospital auxiliary gift shop. A life-long learner, she took art classes in painting, ceramics and glazing and enrolled in political science classes at UCLA. She enjoyed sharing time with friends and regularly joined them at bridge club, book club, the movies or for a meal and conversation. She was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Santa Monica.

Carol served for 18 years on the Board of Trustees of Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York and, upon retirement from the board in , she was named an honorary trustee. She

American screenwriter (–)

Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, – June 28, ) was an American screenwriter and television producer best known for his live television dramas of the s and his anthology television seriesThe Twilight Zone. Serling was active in politics, both on and off the screen, and helped form television industry standards. He was known as the "angry young man" of Hollywood, clashing with television executives and sponsors over a wide range of issues, including censorship, racism, and war.

Early life

Serling was born on December 25, , in Syracuse, New York, to a Jewish family. He was the second of two sons born to Esther (née Cooper, –), a homemaker, and Samuel Lawrence Serling (–). Serling's father had worked as a secretary and amateur inventor before his children were born but took on his father-in-law's profession as a grocer to earn a steady income. Sam Serling later became a butcher after the Great Depression forced the store to close. Rod had an older brother, novelist and aviation writer Robert J. Serling.

Serling spent most of his youth 70&#;mi (&#;km) south of Syracuse in Binghamton, New York, after his family moved there in His parents encouraged his talents as a performer. Sam Serling built a small stage in the basement, where Rod often put on plays (with or without neighborhood children). His older brother, writer Robert, recalled that, at the age of six or seven, Rod entertained himself for hours by acting out dialogue from pulp magazines or movies he had seen. Rod would often ask questions without waiting for their answers. On an hour trip from Binghamton to Syracuse, the rest of the family remained silent to see if Rod would notice their lack of participation. He did not, and he talked nonstop through the entire car ride.

In elementary school, Serling was se