Retired Kent State art professor Bernard M. Weiner died June 21.

Weiner, 81, taught painting and drawing at Kent State from 1970 to 1982, said Marlene Mancini Frost, professor emeritus of art.

Frost and her husband George were friends of Weiner, and they often socialized together until he moved to New Hampshire when he retired.

“He was a beautiful human being — a tender soul,” Frost said. “He was a genuinely honest, compassionate, very gentle, very caring and a very professional man with a wonderful sense of humor.”

Weiner was legendary for his love of baseball, Frost said.

“He could remember all sorts of baseball trivia of both major and minor importance,” she said. “He could remember dates, scores and statistics like no one else. He loved getting in baseball discussions and having contests to see who could remember the most trivia.”

After moving to Keene, N.H. with his wife, Deborah, Weiner took up an interest in gardening, Frost said.

“He had a lovely life in New Hampshire,” she said. “He bought an old house and became a prolific gardener. He also enjoyed working with seniors for many years.”

Weiner was born in Cleveland, and before teaching at Kent State, he worked for the University of Akron, the Cleveland Museum of Art and Cleveland public schools.

Weiner was well-known in the Akron area for writing art columns for the Akron Beacon Journal, and he also created a hall of historic Jewish figures for Akron’s Beth El Synagogue.

Weiner, who died from a pulmonary embolism, also suffered from brain cancer and multiple melanoma. He is survived by his wife, four children and two grandchildren.

Memorial contribution can be made to Congregation Ahavas Achim in Keene, N.H.

Contact on-campus reporter Amanda Garrett at [email protected].