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William Walter Cort
1887–1971
On 21 August 1971 Dr. W. W. Cort died at the age of 84 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. This kind, gentle, modest, dignified and reserved man had a unique impact on medical and veterinary parasitology in this country.
There are only a few thoroughly integrated scientists and educators in contemporary life, and Will, as many of us were privileged to call him, was one of them. He excelled as a literary scholar, as a wise counsellor and as a research scientist who instinctively related to fundamental issues. Above all, he was a benign but firm teacher totally devoted to his students, to whom he would provide intellectual stimulation, encouragement, guidance and inspiration with just a few words spoken at the right time, always blended with an amiable smile. His drive, thoroughness and scientific objectivity were tempered by an authentic gentleness, which enabled him to contribute a fatherly understanding of those who were encountering difficulties, and by an eagerness to listen patiently to the problems of uninitiated investigators.