Frances Talbott-White died early in the morning of Wednesday February 5, at the age of 83. She was born May 7, 1941, in Newark, Ohio, but grew up in Los Angeles. She met her future husband, Stephen Fry, at UC Riverside where both played in the orchestra. Frances played flute, Steve played string bass. They were married January 26, 1963, and have been married for 62 years.
Frances earned her B.A. and M.A. at UCR in English Literature, and taught freshman classes there. She completed the course work for her Ph.D. at Northwestern University in 1974. Her unfinished dissertation was on the philosophy of language developed by 16th-century essayist and philosopher Francis Bacon. She also taught classes at Northwestern and Loyola Marymount University.
For 20 years, from about 1980, Frances ran her business “Beyond Words” in Culver City in which she created resumes and documents for a variety of clients, including TV and media executives. During this period she also served on the board of the Los Angeles chapter of the League of Women Voters, and often led candidate forums for local political races.
Her primary creative outlets were poetry and music. She created a large body of poems, some of which were published in journals and newspapers. She was most noted for her brief poems introducing each new year with reflections on past events. She performed on flute in the Santa Monica College Emeritus concert band, and she sang and mentored in the Angel City Choral.
She lived in Culver City for 50 years, and is survived by her husband, Stephen M. Fry, and sons John and Kenneth and their families.