John was my oldest north- american friend ( and yes, I know he was  a proud Canadian). When I got to Minnesota in the Fall of  72 he was my senior (I think that for  just one year) in the group of theory students. We interacted intensely in courses, seminars and happy hours around Hurwicz, Chipman , Richter, Negishi and, last but not least, Sonnenschein. And in math courses.  He was the always warm adult mentor to the bunch of spaniards that had descended on the department of economics at that time. To that initial phase followed a lifetime of the normal contacts and socialization one would expect from colleagues working in the lightly populated field of economic theory. I was gratified at his remarkable intelectual and academic successes.  I would also like to put on record that in  the last two decades I and my colleagues  in Barcelona have become indebted and most grateful to John - and Jayne - for his generosity in supporting  the Barcelona School of Economics  as a member  of its Scientific Council. He was always available and ready to give advice  ( as we all know his judgement was sterling ) , transmit  ideas (always good), or to travel to Barcelona for the meetings of the Scientific Council, where he was most active. The Barcelona economists community misses him.

The photos I have included are from the last time we met, at a Barcelona academic event that brought  us back to our Minneapolis days. It was a privilege to have John with us. 

For Esther and me the friendship with John and Jayne has been a gift.

I am really sorry that I cannot be at John's memorial.  I will be at a conference presenting a paper.   John was one of the handful of economists that made the GSB what it is today.  His research accomplishments changed the way people think multiple times.   But equally important are is accomplishments as a mentor and PhD advisor.  His academic family tree is one of the most impressive of any living economist, perhaps the most impressive.   My own view is that we should, at the GSB, find a way to memorialize what he did for our PhD students.   I have in mind an award named in his honor for accomplishments in PhD advising.   This award need not be given every year, but would recognize faculty whose level of mentorship as a PhD advisor is judged to be outstanding.   

On a personal level, John was a good friend of mine.   We met on a faculty study trip soon after I arrived at the GSB, and we really enjoyed each other.  I will miss him.

We can’t possibly share all the memories we have of John, but here are a couple:

We met in late 1976, when John was on the faculty at Kellogg, Kathy and I were classmates in their Master of Management program, and Peter was just arriving from the UK to marry me. Their friendship was just the warm support we needed amidst all that change. As we planned our wedding, Kathy showed me her own wedding album, partly because she thought it was so funny that John’s eyes had to be retouched in some of them. He had been working so hard, he couldn’t keep them open!

The photo I’m posting is from Peter’s and my wedding. John is being himself, whispering something silly or sassy into my mother’s ear. You can see how tickled she is. Two weeks later, he and Kathy invited us to New Year’s Eve dinner at their apartment. It was the only time I’ve ever been served escargots in someone’s home! (Of course, one escaped into my lap..) Another year, they hosted proper roast goose Christmas dinner. *Sigh* Always the real thing.

In 1980 John and Peter got new jobs at Stanford and in Berkeley, respectively. It was fun to share the confusing process of adjusting to California. Their house in Stanford was the exact opposite of our former homes in cold-winter places. Lots of sliding glass doors, huge windows, innovative heating system embedded in the concrete floors, and a wooden hot tub in the back yard. John and Kathy would read aloud the weather reports for the Northeast US from the Sunday New York Times, just to smile over our escape from all the snow and cold.

But we did get cold, and rain, and then the house felt more like a beach hut than a professor’s home! The windows made the house drafty, the heating only worked in some places, and changing those things really wasn’t practical. Never mind, they made the best of things and even invited us to try out the hot tub on New Year’s Eve! How adventurous we felt! Back when hot tubs were a new thing, a Brit and a Midwesterner, sitting and soaking with our friends, outdoors, naked, just chatting and gazing up at the stars! John was always teaching us something to enjoy.

Many years later, (some time after Kathy’s passing) Jayne and I met through a professional organization in San Francisco. At one meeting she took me aside and asked, “You went to Northwestern, right? Did you know John Roberts? Is he worth pursuing?” (They had been in contact through an online dating site. ) I knew John much better than I did Jayne, and I had no hesitation at all saying he absolutely was!

John was a wonderful guy in so many ways, and we are very grateful to have had him in our lives.

We have had the pleasure of John’s friendship for many years.  It was always a treat when he and Jayne would come over to hang out over brunch. John and Nick and Ben would watch English Premier League soccer.  COYS!

John was a true gentleman, thoughtful and kind.  We will miss him.