PHILIP MARK EISENHOWER
March 10, 1955 November 16, 2021
Philip Mark Eisenhower, 66, of Santa Monica, California, died of cardiac arrest on November 16, 2021 in Santa Clarita, California.
Born in Bakersfield, California, Phil was a popular student at East Bakersfield High School, graduating in 1973. He graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara with a degree in theater arts and then traveled to Bali to study Balinese Mask Theater. and pantomime with Marcel Marceau’s teacher, Tienne Decroux, in Paris.
In the summer of 1972-1975 and the mid-1980s, Phil worked for the Calvin Crest Conferences Christian campsite, mainly as music director.
As an educator, Phil served with honors as a high school teacher in LA County and then for many years as a studio teacher for the film industry. Phil has taught local child actors for film, television, and commercial productions. In this role he was very popular and sought after, certainly also because he was so passionate about this task. The colleagues valued his skills, his good humor and, above all, his integrity. Noticing that his older students remembered SAT and GRE level vocabulary more easily when presented as funny insults, he wrote a whimsical book, Vicious Vocabulary, for that purpose.
This gentle and funny man was a kind, loving, generous, and compassionate spirit; he had an extraordinary personal charisma and could light up a room just by walking into it. He was a big hit with the youth: his family’s children and grandchildren were always happy when he brought out the adorable toys he used on movie sets that were never far away because he kept many of them in the trunk of his car. These were ready, as were the more than enough stringed instruments that he displayed in his living room. On Halloween and again at Christmas, Phil’s enthusiastic generosity found expression in his immense selection of festive lights and decorations, which he brought not only to his own bungalow apartment, but also to the entire courtyard of his neighbors’ bungalows.
After the death of his father and mother, William and Laura Grace, Phil leaves behind many relatives, including a brother, Will (Nancy) Eisenhower, and three sisters, Lauralyn (Rob) Kolb, Elise (Mark Bern) Eisenhower, and Christel (Tony) Biasell; and also from their children: Phil (Kathy), Lara, Jeffrey (Jennifer), David (Katrina), Arthur, Alexandra, Simon (Natasha), Taylor (David) and Hillary (Adam); and nine great-nieces and nephews: Jack, Ben, Paloma, Pax, Josiah, Avery, Tenley, Edmund and Daniel. Many friends and colleagues mourn his passing.
A memorial service followed by a church reception will be held on December 15, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Andrews Church, 301 Avenue D, Redondo Beach, CA. Reverend Simon Biasell, Phil’s nephew, will officiate. Phil is buried in Greenlawn Cemetery Northeast, Bakersfield, CA. Then, on May 21, 2022, there will be a reception in honor of Phil at the Calvin Crest Conferences, Oakhurst, CA. Both of the planned events are open to everyone.
www.bakersfield.com/obits
Published by Bakersfield Californian on December 12, 2021.
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