Radcliffe Allison David (April 19, 1934 – April 1, 2006) was the television announcer for phatLiterature’s 2002 and 2004 seasons. He also contributed time and money towards phatLiterature’s development, but more importantly, he was Gabrielle David’s “Dad.” (pictured with Gabrielle at four years old)
Born in Manhattan to Undine Hyacinth Grant David and Frank Thomas David, both immigrants from British Guyana, Radcliffe was the younger brother to Barbara, and the thoroughly spoiled grandson of Jane Grant. His father Frank passed away when he was three years old, and subsequently his mother and his grandmother raised both him and his sister.
Radcliffe grew up on Washington Avenue in the Bronx. He began singing at an early age, and by the time he was a teenager, was a member of the senior choir at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in the Bronx. He attended local public schools in the Bronx and graduated from Haaren High School, an all boys school in Manhattan, where he was affectionately known to his peers as “Li’l Dave.” During his high school years, he participated in a number of activities, notably the basketball team as No. 17, and the Service Squad. He graduated in 1952 with aspirations to become an electrical engineer.
After graduation, Radcliffe worked with one of his best friends in a moving company, and later began working at a number of companies as a draftsperson. In 1956, Radcliffe’s family relocated to Jamaica, Queens and shortly thereafter, married Delores Brooks on September 27, 1958. They eventually settled down in the Corona-East Elmhurst area in Queens and had two daughters, Gabrielle and Marcella.
By 1963, Radcliffe began working at Grumman Aerospace Corporation, and was one of a handful of black men then employed there. Determined to succeed at Grumman and at Delores’ urging and support, he enrolled at Queens College and earned a bachelor’s degree in the arts, majoring in Economics in 1970. He taught briefly at Adelphi University in Garden City, Long Island, and helped his wife, Delores, obtain her degree at Downstate Medical in 1972. She eventually became an occupational therapist for the Board of Health and worked in New York City’s Board of Education. As their daughters became older, Radcliffe and Delores traveled extensively, and they especially enjoyed “cruising” with family and friends.
Throughout the years, Radcliffe became increasingly active at St. Joseph’s Episcopalian Church in Queens Village. In addition to his service on the choir, he was a long-standing member of the Vestry, and assisted the church as needs arose. Besides singing for the choir, he sang at weddings, funerals and other social events. He even sang at City Hall during an inauguration before the City Council and then Mayor David Dinkins. He was known by friends and family as the “Black Pavarotti” and/or “the Voice.”
Having attained management status and after 30 plus years of service, Radcliffe retired from Northrop Grumman in 1994. His duties as a logistical engineer and unit manager included advising the Navy on supply operations and maintenance of several aircraft, notably the A-6 Intruder and the F-14 Tomcat. When his wife Delores was forced to retire due to her illness in 1990, Radcliffe took care of his beloved wife until her death on April 4, 2001. They were married for 43 years.
After his wife’s death, Radcliffe maintained active interests in music, reading, gadgets and travel. A voracious reader, mostly of mysteries, he donated hundreds of hardcover books to several Queens Borough Public Library branches in his neighborhood, becoming their favorite patron. He enjoyed traveling to DC, Alaska, Chicago and Las Vegas. Since he suffered from kidney failure and other ailments, his daughter Gabrielle remained by his side. In turn, he helped fund a little-known literary project, phatLiterature and lent his rich, baritone voice to the program’s 2002 and 2004 seasons in the underwriting credit pod. He quickly became known throughout the literary community, particularly the poetry community in New York, as the driving force and supporter of this all-important program.
Radcliffe was hospitalized the last week of March 2006. He took a turn for the worse and passed into life eternal in the pre-dawn hours of April 1, 2006, 18 days short of his 72nd birthday (and ironically, on the day Pedro Pietri was being honored at the Nuyorican Café). His loss has been felt all over the country; especially by Gabrielle’s friends and colleagues, and the poetry community in New York City he helped support through phatLiterature.
At his funeral, Gabrielle eulogized her father by stating: “Although my father was not a poet, he lived his life as a poet. He loved music and art and all things beautiful. He saw the beauty in his wife and his daughters. He enjoyed socializing and talking to people, and was known for the twinkle in his eye and his booming laugh. He was socially and politically acute, and compassionate towards those who had less than he had. He enjoyed the beauty of words written on paper. He was curious and adventurous. My father was not a poet, but he often saw the world through a poet’s eyes.” He was deeply loved; he will always be missed.
