Arthur Lee Dirks, 76 of Taunton Mass., died Monday, Aug. 10, 2020.
Due to Covid-19 restrictions, in lieu of traditional funeral services, a private celebration of life will be held later in the year.
Arthur was under the care of the Reindeau-Mulvey Funeral Home in Taunton Mass. For online condolences, please visit http://funeralinnovations.com/obituary/494021/Arthur-Dirks/ and/or https://www.r-mfh.com/obituary/494021/arthur-lee-dirks/
He was the beloved husband of 52 years to Diane (Keegan) Dirks, father to daughter, Kristin Dirks of Monroe, Ore., beloved older brother to Dana (Dirks) Metcalfe of Tallahassee Fla., and Renee (Dirks) Rowcliffe of Colorado Springs Colo.; and uncle to Mathew Metcalf, Manda (Metcalfe) Payne, and Heather (Rowcliffe) Wagner.
Arthur was born in Newton Kan. to Arthur Wilbur Dirks and Martha Adeline (Woods) Dirks. He served in the army from 1962 to 1965, as a Polish interpreter in Germany during the cold war. From1966-1973, he was a TV weather man at KAYS, a news director at KLWN and a newsman at KWBB where he won the Kansas Bar Association Award for his editorials.
Arthur earned a BA from Fort Hays State in Speech / Communications (1971), a MA in Theatre at University of Kansas (1974), a MFA in Theatre at Illinois State University (1980), an EdD Higher Education Admin. at University of Massachusetts Boston (2001). Starting in 1973, Arthur taught for 41 years in Theatre, Dance, and Speech Communications, and designed sets for over 135 theatrical productions. He served two years as acting Dean of School of Arts & Sciences and about 10 years as department chairperson at Bridgewater State University. He taught at Wayne State College for several years in the late 1970s to 1980s.
Arthur was active with professional organizations: New England Theatre Conference (NETC), US Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT), and American College of Theatre Festival (ACTF). He also was active in community theatre, West Hartford Summer Arts Festival, Mac-Haydn Theatre in Chatham NY, and the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.
Arthur loved music from many genres. He and his wife Diane maintained a large music library, creating eclectic collections. After retiring in 2014, Arthur focused on genealogical research and published books about the Dirks-Woods and the Keegan-Morford sides of the family.
