George W. Dent, Jr.

• Author: Jensen, Erik M.
• Position: Testimonial

George Dent made his first appearance at the Case Western Reserve School of Law in the fall of 1988, when he presented a faculty workshop. He was then based at New York Law School, but we had an interest in getting him, wife Rebecca, (1) and daughters Chloe and Delia to consider a move to Cleveland. (2) We needed to do more due diligence, however. We already knew about the quality of George's scholarship, of course; we didn't have to bring him here to read his articles. We invited him to be a visiting professor in the fall of 1989 so we could see him in the classroom and also ensure that he had the full complement of social graces. (3) And George needed to check us out as well.

George passed all the tests. After the visit, we made him an offer he could have refused, but didn't. We must have passed his tests too. George has been here as a regular faculty member--or as regular as any of the rest of us--since 1990.

In another tribute in this issue, Jon Entin has provided details about George's life--Little League batting averages, number of sub-four-minute miles, SSRN downloads, etc.--and I'm not going to reinvent the wheel here. (4) But I want to expand on the discussion of George's initial contacts with this institution (5) before I move on to other essential material about George.

In one of the piles on my desk, I have copies of two memos I wrote when we were recruiting George. With a little embellishment, they provide important historical background. (6) Besides, I don't usually get the opportunity to publish my memos in a widely disseminated forum, (7) and I'm not going to let an opportunity like this get away. (8)

On my own initiative, I prepared a memo for the Appointments Committee about George's performance at a Cleveland Indians game. (9) Just as we'd be concerned if, at dinner, a faculty candidate made slurping noises and spilled food down his or her front--George didn't and doesn't--I thought the faculty should know whether a candidate had acted appropriately at an intellectual event like a ballgame. (10) George hit the ball out of the park. (11) The Baseball Reference report on the game characterizes it as a "Night Game, on grass," (12) but we weren't. The game was played on September 12, 1989, and basic data confirm how long ago that was. Both starting pitchers, Bud Black for the Indians and Frank Tanana for the Tigers, went the distance--no endless parades of relievers!--and the final score was 1-0, with the Tribe on top. (13) The game took only 2 hours and 8 minutes to play. (14) That's about five innings' worth of a game today. Here's my memo, just as it was written back in the day, except that I've added annotations in brackets and italics:

MEMORANDUM TO: Bill Marshall, Co-chair Calvin Sharpe, Co-chair Appointments Committee FROM: Erik Jensen RE: George Dent DATE: September 13, 1989 Last night I attended the Indians-Tigers game with George Dent and my wife, Helen. [1] [The comma after "wife" indicates that, although I'm from Utah, I had only the one wife. That's still true] George was quite well prepared for the situation [I don't know why I put the "quite" in that passage], familiar with the players, the rules, and the grand old game's traditions. He cheered at the right times and for the right team. He handled unsettling news (the departure of Doc Edwards [the Indians' manager had just been fired]) with no signs of rattling. All in all, George displayed the poise of a real professional. I offer my highest praise: he did not embarrass the institution. [I'm set in my ways; that's still my highest praise.] [2]

George's reputation has obviously spread beyond academe. Until last night, I had not seen a collector ask an academic to autograph a baseball. In his first visit to Cleveland Stadium, George was asked to do just that. [3] He did so with aplomb [and a pen].

[1.] Since Helen is not a candidate for a faculty position, I will leave her behavior out of this. [Her behavior was OK, anyway.]

[2.] Moreover, he has yet to see an opposing team score against the Indians. [That has changed.]

[3.] I suppose I should note that an usher, a hot dog man, a beer vendor, a cotton candy salesman, Helen, and I were also asked to autograph the ball. Do you have any idea how hard it is to write on a baseball? [The announced attendance was 5523, which probably means about 500 people were there. Almost everyone in the ballpark might have signed that baseball.]

The baseball experience in 1989 was a happy one, but I've learned that attending games with George doesn't ensure Tribe victories. In 2016, he and I were at game six of the World Series, and, after the Indians muffed a fly ball in the first inning, they were pretty much out of the game. A win would have clinched the Series, but oh well ... we'll get 'em next century. On the other hand, we...