THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 30, 1996 TAG: 9601300293
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY MASON PETERS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
Lucy Leake Vaughan, who cheerfully shrugged off years of painful illness to bring professional theater to the Albemarle, quietly died offstage Sunday at her home in the 100 block of W. Church St.
Vaughan, 73, had devoted much of her life to the performing arts, first as a young dancer and actress in several Broadway productions, and later as a professor of speech and drama at the College of the Albemarle.
Her red hair, flashing eyes and sometimes salty stage directions influenced a generation of the Albemarle's stage-struck young people.
``She had a lively imagination and brought contagious enthusiasm to those around her,'' said Frank R. Parrish, a friend and long-time participant in amateur theatrical productions in Northeastern North Carolina. Parrish is also district attorney for the Albemarle and no stranger to human drama.
Vaughan in recent years had been troubled with what she called ``a hip problem.''
Parrish and others who performed under Vaughan's stage directions were often anguished by Vaughan's struggles to endure herchronic pain.
More recently, another friend observed Monday, Vaughan was troubled with new infirmities that cruelly punished a woman accustomed to an active life.
Vaughan was born in Cleveland, the daughter of Harold E. and Helen D. Leake.
Show business beckoned early, and, during World War II, Vaughan challenged Broadway and performed as a dancer in several successful shows. She also joined a wartime USO troupe and appeared with Bob Hope and other stars.
Vaughan's stage savvy during the war won her the rank of USO captain.
One of her last productions was ``USO Camp Show,'' recently staged at the Albemarle Plantation dinner theater. The show was in part based on Vaughan's wartime experiences on Broadway and with the USO. She later studied drama at the University of Houston and came to Elizabeth City two decades ago to teach at COA.
Vaughan appeared in or directed many other shows at the Angler's Cove dinner theater in Bethel, as well as productions in Elizabeth City.
A member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Vaughan is survived by a son, John Thomas Vaughan Jr., of Elizabeth City, and two grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Feb. 3, at 11 a.m. in Christ Episcopal Church. The Rev. Renfro Sproul will officiate. Twiford's Memorial Chapel on Church Street is in charge of arrangements. by CNB