We mourn the passing of Earl Showerman of Jacksonville, Oregon, who died peacefully on August 2, 2026, at age 82.
A retired emergency room physician, Earl devoted his later years to Shakespeare scholarship and became a respected leader in the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship, serving as president from 2022 to 2024 and later being honored as Oxfordian of the Year in 2025. Born in 1944, he studied at Harvard College and the University of Michigan Medical School before practicing medicine in Oregon for more than thirty years.
After retiring, Earl studied Shakespeare at Southern Oregon University and became known for his lectures, teaching, and research on the playwright’s medical knowledge and Greek sources. In 2025, he published Shakespeare’s Greater Greek, a major work exploring the influence of Greek drama, epic, and history on Shakespeare’s plays.
Earl will be remembered for his intellect, generosity, wide ranging interests, unlimited energy, love of dancing and music, and a lifelong devotion to truth, learning, and the Shakespeare cause.
Flights of angels . . .
I had the pleasure of interacting with Earl in connection with the 2019 conference in Hartford and after. A true gentleman and scholar.