Marvin Gould was born in Enfield, Middlesex, England to Amy House Gould, a classical and jazz pianist and Edwin Gould, a draftsman and engineer. In 1951, Marvin and his family came to the U.S. via the Transatlantic Brides and Parents Association aboard the S.S. America. Their first home in the U.S. was in Kansas City and ten years later they settled in Texas. Marvin died of cancer in the same city where he first lived more than 70 years later.
Marvin’s passions were family, art, music and golf, among thousands of other interests. He was an endless seeker of knowledge and could hold a conversation with anyone. His sense of humor and wit are what drew people to him. Today, he would still be talking with the nurses if he could. We often joked he would win at Jeopardy if given the chance.
To appease his mother, Marvin was formally trained as a pianist and read and wrote music. During his teenage years in a rebellious streak, he took up the guitar, began playing rock ‘n roll and never turned back. One of his students wrote him a note saying, “you are a juke box hero.” To stay out of trouble, he played in a band during high school in venues around Texas. Later in Kansas, he became a member of Melvin and the Monotones and the Back Porch Blues Band. His solo performance was “Knockout” by the Bad News Blues Band. He was reciting lyrics to some of his favorite rock and roll music days before he died.
Marvin’s love of music translated into appreciating marks on a page and an understanding of time between notes and the space between lines. At the age of eight, his father gave him a Speedball lettering book, several pin points and a bottle of ink; with these tools he drew the Montgomery Ward catalog. Fascinated by lines on a page, Marvin developed a love of drawing that continued throughout his life. Art was his solace and his means of Marking • Time.
In 1969, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served as an airplane refueler along the flight line on Okinawa during the Vietnam Conflict. There, he developed an appreciation for the Asian culture and landscape, often reflected in his art work. He was honorably discharged as an E4.
After his military service, Marvin was a draftsman for a steel corporation in Houston and then branched out to sign making and billboard design for companies in Texas, Utah and Kansas. At one point during his career in Texas, he was painting a billboard and fell from the scaffolding. Later he joked, “I shouldn’t have stepped back to critique my work”. Marvin earned his Bachelor’s in Fine Arts from Sam Houston State University in the 1970s. Thirty years later, he returned to school and earned a Master of Fine Arts from Kansas State University. He was a graduate teaching assistant and then an instructor of art at K-State. He was passionate about teaching, and genuinely cared about his students. It was never just about art, but about life and learning about oneself.
While teaching and after his retirement, he also worked as a Gallery Tech at the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art and assisted exhibit designers and curators with all aspects of display, design and maintenance. Marvin worked on the installation and design of many exhibitions over the years, one of the more difficult ones, especially related to signage, vinyl and lettering was Pete Souza: Two Presidents, One Photographer.
Marvin’s own works of art are displayed in galleries in Houston, Tulsa and the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art, in addition to homes around the country.
An avid athlete in high school, he played every sport, but baseball was his favorite. He developed a passion for golf and began teaching his daughter Ashley to play when she was two. That passion continued through January of this year when he was playing in 37-degree weather. He has certificates to prove two-holes-in-one, both on Kansas golf courses. One of his favorite memories was walking the Old Course at St. Andrews Golf Club in Scotland on a beautiful fall day with his besties – Millie and Donna.
On St. Patrick’s Day (a date he could easily remember), Marvin and Rebecca were married in Denton, Texas. Daughter Ashley was his love. He was incredibly proud of her accomplishments and instilled in her a love of art, creativity, sports, music, how to fix stuff, and so much more.
Marvin cherished his many friends and colleagues including, Beth, Duane, Lindsay, Nelson, Raleigh, his golf buddies, art colleagues, and so many more.
He is survived by Rebecca, his wife of almost 44 years, his daughter Ashley Jager, son-in-law Robert Jager, his precious grandson Alex Jager, half-sister Elizabeth Davidson and many cousins in England. He is also survived by other family members including the Matochas, van Dijks, Schoemans, Bacons, Borrellos and his much-loved nephews and nieces. He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Marilyn Susan Gould.
The family thanks the Manhattan and KU Medical Center nurses and physicians for the care they showed Marvin over the last months of his life.
A celebration of his life and art will be held later in the year.
Memorial contributions can be made in his name to the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art or the Manhattan Arts Center. Contributions may be left in care of the Yorgensen-Meloan-Londeen Funeral Home, 1616 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas 66502.