In Memoriam

Anthony W. “Tony” Morris

Obituary

Anthony Wistar Morris, Tony to all who knew him, passed away on December 21, 2020 at the age of 78.

Tony was born on August 4, 1942, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Virginia Brock and Effingham Buckley Morris Jr.. Tony Graduated with a Bachelor's degree in French Language/Literature and Japanese Language from Yale University, a Masters degree in Cinema from the University of Southern California, and a Masters degree of Architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture.

The oldest of three children, Tony was born into a large family which included 17 cousins. Family get-togethers were a place for Tony’s playful and witty personality to shine. At meals, Tony would regale the family with incredible imitations of the animals on the farm: chickens, pigs, sheep, dairy cows, goats, steer, cats and dogs. Tony also could imitate human dialects and accents of any kind. It was this inherent talent that made learning foreign languages second nature to Tony.

Tony had a brilliant mind and excelled in school. Tony attended Chestnut Hill Academy where he won a Time Magazine award for excellence in journalism. Tony went on to attend Kent School in Connecticut where he continued to win awards.

Before his collegiate pursuits of academia, Tony answered a call to adventure by traveling to Alaska and spent an entire summer working tirelessly on the construction of the Whitehorse-Skagway railroad.

It was at Yale that Tony excelled at languages and discovered his passion for film. Teaming up with a fellow student, the two traveled frequently to capture intriguing topics. One trip took a fateful turn that resulted in the two missing their returning flight home. Sitting in a barbershop chair, Tony discovered the next morning from a newspaper on the floor that the flight they had missed crashed with no survivors. Tony couldn’t ignore the significance and became more invigorated to live life to fullest.

Tony produced the first student film at Yale to win acclaim which helped him get into the University of Southern California and pursue cinema. Tony had the good fortune to study alongside cinematic greats such as Francis Ford Coppola, John Milius, and George Lucas, and helped with some of the initial research for the acclaimed film Apocalypse Now.

Tony began his career working for the National Broadcasting Company in Cleveland Ohio as a writer/producer for the Emmy Award-winning documentary series Montage. Tony then went on to pursue making independent films on such subjects as the energy crisis and the survival of the Sumatran rhinoceros.

Tony’s passion for discovery led to his fascination with the acclaimed psycho analyst Carl Jung. Instrumental to the conception and production of the meaningful documentary entitled Matter of Heart, Tony had the opportunity to interview profound abstract expressionist American painter Sam Francis, and initiated a correspondence with influential film director Federico Fellini.

Tony eventually made his way westward, moving to Los Angeles where he fell in love with a former Israeili soldier. After the two married, Tony wanted a creative change to better support a growing family, so he decided to become an architect. Before graduating from the Southern California Institute of Architecture, Tony won an award from the California Apartment Association for his vision of the Apartment of Tomorrow.

As an architect, Tony managed various construction projects for many years, ranging from luxury homes to large-scale commercial buildings.

In 1993, a wildfire ravaged the Topanga Canyon community in which he lived, and displaced Tony, his family, and his angora rabbit from their home. Seeing the devastation first hand, Tony set out to champion for the future safety of Topanga and the surrounding lands continually at risk from arson and climate change.

Tony founded the Wildfire Research Network, a non-profit public-safety, research, and education organization. Tony appeared in multiple newspapers, including the New York Times, telling his story for the dire need of aerial firefighting planes.

Tony was asked to testify at the California State Capital on several occasions to share findings and implore representatives to show support for budget increases to bring firefighting planes to California permanently.

During this time, Tony ventured heavily into freelance journalism and wrote for multiple newspapers including the Los Angeles Times. Defiant to garner more support for firefighting aircraft, Tony reached out to local congressional candidate Brad Sherman. Tony offered support and became the official field coordinator, community liaison, and photographer for the campaign. Tony worked alongside the great political strategist James Carville and was fortunate to meet Israeli president Shimon Peres. Sherman’s bid for United States Congress was successful.

Since moving to Topanga Canyon 1988, Tony Morris embraced the surrounding community with open arms and an open heart. Writing for the local paper and never missing a celebration, Tony passionately shared wisdom and fanciful stories of his journeys to all who would lend him their ears.

Tony was a father, a grandfather, a husband, a brother, a son, an artist, an architect, a journalist, a producer, a photographer, a linguist, a translator, an environmentalist, an animal lover, a conservationist, a raconteur, and a friend to all.

Acclaimed Los Angeles Times columnist Al Martinez once wrote:

Tony Morris isn’t the kind of dude you are likely to see whooping it up at a party. No wild and crazy guy rocking and rolling for attention in the center of a dance floor. If he’s at the party at all, he’s more likely to be off to one side monologuing in his deep basso about something, well, important. There is nothing frivolous about the man.

The next time fire roars over the mountains or up the canyons of Southern California, discoloring the sky with flames as high as heaven, and a jet comes blasting in out of Victorville to join an aerial assault with massive water drops, you’re going to have to give a lot of credit to Tony Morris.

Tony was imbued with a fervent belief in synchronicity. Tony believed life was not a series of random events but rather an expression of a deeper order and meaning. Tony touched the lives of everyone he came in contact with. As time goes by, we will recognize just how sorely he will be missed.

Tony is survived by his wife Daniela and son Sean.