Paul M. Corum
Died 1988
On page 171 of the Class of ’65 Yearbook, there is a picture of Paul Corum playing Richard III, one of two Shakespeare productions the Yale Dramatic Association put on in honor of the bard’s 400th birthday. “Paul Corum was magnificent as Richard,” the Yearbook says. “His portrayal of the hunchback was forceful and well-paced.”
Paul was serious about acting. He joined the Dramat in 1962 and stayed with it through graduation. In his biography he listed his future occupation as “actor,” and he spent the rest of his life in the theater. When his roommate, Scot Powe, visited him in London in the summer of 1976, Paul was still paying his actor’s dues, taking every bit part he could find, looking for that big break.
Paul lived the last 18 years of his life in London. He and his partner, John, died within weeks of each other in the fall of 1988. Paul had just turned 45.
Douglas Mitchell remembers: Paul was a friend and room mate for four years. He was always interested in drama and that was his major at Yale. The high point of his career was when he played Richard III in the Dramat production. He did a very nice job.