Kendrick Frazier, the acclaimed science writer and skeptic who has been the editor of Skeptical Inquirer for nearly all of its 46-year history, has died at age 80 following a brief illness.
The entire Center for Inquiry community is shocked and heartbroken by the sudden passing of our beloved colleague and friend.
Ken was a tireless advocate for science and skepticism who inspired generations of journalists, skeptics, and investigators in pursuit of truth.
His was an irreplaceable presence and all of us at the Center for Inquiry are deeply saddened by his passing.
We invite you to share your thoughts, memories, and recollections of Ken on this page.
Remembrance Wall
I’ve met many inspirational figures but none who were both as accomplished and as humane as Ken. That magical combination is what made him so remarkable and beloved. Ken’s storied career speaks for itself in his decades of groundbreaking and impactful work. But it was Ken’s kindness, compassion, and utter humanity that inspired loyalty and deep regard from everyone he worked with and knew.
Robyn Blumner
Often, when writing, Iâve found myself asking âHow would Ken say this?â and then failing miserably to come close to what Ken would say. He had this intelligence, this optimistic and beautiful soul. Something Iâve said dozens of times over the last several decades is âWhen I grow up, I want to be like Ken Frazier.ââ
Barry Karr
Ken Frazier devoted his life to spreading education and science to every society and every nation. He will never be forgotten. He was a true world leader in the effort to help as many people as possible reject unproven paranormal and supernatural claims and follow actual evidence wherever it leads.
Eddie Tabash
It may seem to be stating the obvious to say that a man who was an editor for over 50 years had a special way with words, but that’s one of the first things I think of when remembering Ken. He always knew not only exactly what should be said but how it should be saidâand the how was invariably with tact and respect.
Ken was one of the kindest, smartest, most genuine people I have ever met. I had the honor of having him as my editor for nearly 17 years, and I learned so much from him. Not only about scientific skepticism, something he knew more about than almost anyone on the planet, but also the craft of an editor: the roles of reader’s advocate, authors’ ambassador, and curator of the subject matter.
Julia Lavarnway
Ken was the archetype of skepticism, seeking proof and rejecting speculation, yet never in a way that came across as cold or unfeeling. As a colleague and friend, he was one of the best, and I will remember his warmth, humor, and kindness.
Nick Little
I was very sorry indeed to hear of the death of Ken Frazier – the day after I got the latest issue of SI, with a typically lively Editorial.
Ray Ward
I am a long-time supporter of CSICOP from way back, and have read SI for many decades, always admiring Ken’s skill in combining strict academic standards with lively and attractive presentation. I was at the London conference in the 1980s attended by leading CSICOP figures, including Ken, which set in motion the growth of skepticism in the UK, but don’t recall meeting him then. I did, however, meet him at CSICOP’s 20th birthday celebrations in Amherst and Buffalo in 1996. He published many of my letters, and a book review. He is a very sad loss, and our thoughts must be with his wife, son (a daughter, sadly, died), other family and friends. He will be a hard act to follow, and I wish his successor the very best of luck.
Although I didn’t often work directly with Ken in my role at CFI, I will always remember his kind and gentle soul. He was graceful and always willing to learn and hear someone else’s perspective. I am at a loss for words at times, but I know the skeptic community will soldier on, carrying Ken’s torch with us as we do.
Nicole Scott
Dear Ken, dear Ken,
Like your legions of admirers and colleagues, I was shocked and heartsick to read your essay about your devastating illness. It was just like you to write such an elegant and eloquent piece, evoking all that is good in the natural world of beauty and the human world of love, before the bombshell to the reader.
In your essay, you set a model of how to live, how to face our mortality. The sorrow I felt on learning of your goddamned leukemia was eased, somewhat, by knowing that you were able to take such a magnificent journey, with your beloved Ruth at your side, and that yours has been the richest of livesâclose family, friends, long-standing colleagues, work that has given you immense satisfaction and meaning. I hope you feel the gratification of knowing that your lifeâs work has been ever more important in combatting humanityâs endless enemiesâsuperstition, pseudoscience, and nonsense. And what a satisfying culmination to that life work to have finished your book.
You have been an inspiration to so many, always a pleasure to work with, always warm and patient and professional. Skepticism could not have had a better or more tireless advocate. Thank you for all you have given us.
With deep admiration,
Carol Tavris
For the last eight years, I have had the great privilege of having my column for Skeptical Inquirer magazine edited by Kendrick Frazier. He was unfailingly supportive and encouraging. He was the perfect editor for Skeptical Inquirer because he was a renaissance man who was interested in all areas of science and who reveled in the beauty of the natural world. Most importantly he was kind, temperate, and compassionate. I am sure there are innumerable writers who feel they owe Ken a debt of gratitude. I certainly do.
Ken’s loss leaves an enormous hole that will be difficult to fill. Fortunately, he has supported and inspired many other skeptics who will carry the message forward.
Stuart Vyse
I’m still in shock over losing my friend, mentor, and colleague Ken Frazier. For a quarter of a century I worked closely with him on Skeptical Inquirer, on everything from editorial duties to cover designs. He was the backbone of the magazine and usually kept a low profile, but his role was invaluable and SI is more crucial to skepticism than most people recognize; its goals and scope are unique. Aside from editing he was also a fine writer, photographer (he loved to send photos of wildlife spotted near his cabin), amateur astronomer, science enthusiast, and so much more. Iâm honored to have worked with him for so long, and gotten to know his family as well.
Ben Radford
I was subscribed to receive my SI copy in Greece, but during the early ’00s one out of two issues would never arrive. Whenever this hapened I was sending an email to the editor, and it was received by Mr Frazier. Once he replied something like “Don’t worry I just sent you another copy, I do not know why this happens”. I replied “thank you; perhaps its because of my sign :)”. He came back with “I will pretent I did not read this!”
Vangelis Kritikos
Ken was a brilliant fellow, a genial skeptic, and always very kind to me and, I’m sure, to many others.
John Allen Paulos
My deepest sympathies. I had the honor of corresponding with Kendrick Frazier some years ago as we worked through the process of publishing an article in Skeptical Inquirer. Truly a great man. A loss for the inhabitants of our planet. He will be missed.
Felix Wasiak
I had only a brief encounter with Ken by email but he was so kind.
Barry Karr, Executive Director of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry and Skeptical Inquirer: “Something Iâve said dozens of times over the last several decades is âWhen I grow up, I want to be like Ken Frazier.ââ
I can see why. Condolences to the friends and family. Ken will be missed.
Ron Jette
Eternal thanks for contributing to spread rational thinking and critical analysis culture. God and/or the good forces of nature keep you, family and friends in happiness.
Manuel Dominguez
There are too few skeptics in this world. When we lose one it is always hard. When we lose one like Ken, it is tragic. He was an example to all of us, and we will all miss him badly.
Edzard Ernst
This is heartbreaking for me. It was Ken’s feature article in Science News about CSICOP’s founding that created a watershed moment in my life, showing me that I had a place to turn to find the truth about all the bunk I had casually followed in high school and college. Purveyors of this junk science had repeatedly claimed — as they continue to claim — that “establishment” scientists were unwisely dismissing important discoveries about UFOs, psychics and the like. Ken turned me on to the fact that the opposite was true, and that the real researchers had discovered that it was all hokum. As a result, I spent much of my 40 years at the Providence Journal working to expose pseudoscience falsehoods whenever the opportunity presented itself. He and the Skeptical Inquirer became my trusty guide along a journey that gave me some of the fondest memories of my career. His death is a huge loss.
Gene Emery
This is very sad news. I have been reading Skeptical Inquirer since approximately 1984, and it has been a fantastic resource that was very much needed during a time when pseudoscience and complete nonsense was being spread via the media. I read many of Mr. Frazier’s articles and have read one of his books that, I believe, he authored, but also a few of his edited compendiums. He will be missed. Thanks, Kendrick, for all that you have contributed to the skeptical community.
Robert Grisham
Ken,
Your diagnosis resonates because I found out yesterday that my aunt in Wichita has the exact same condition.
I don’t know you real well, but I know the most important thing from my vantage pointâthat you are ultra-respected in professional circles. And that means more to me than anything, thanks to my father instilling this in me at a young age. It may have played a role in me continuing to write in SI for so many years.
Thank you for being so easy to work with in the publishing realm. Especially thank you for being so professionally respectedâit makes it so much easier to hitch my wagon to an organization for so long. You are the very best. Bryan
Bryan Farha, Ed.D., LPC, NCC
Bryan Farha
Professor & Director, Applied Behavioral Studies
Oklahoma City University
Looking through my cv, I see that Ken published my first article in SI all the way back in 1980 (Psychic Archaeology)! I believe that this was during the Miocene Epoch. I’m sure despite his better judgement (lol) he continued to publish my articles about archaeology and skepticism. Particularly in the early years, as a young scholar with what many of my colleagues considered to be a niche interest, Ken provided me with an outlet to share my ideas. In a very real sense, those SI pieces paved the way for my book Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries, a fact for which I will be forever grateful. Ken’s support made a huge difference in my professional life. Thank you my friend. Your memory is a blessing.
Ken Feder
We were only able to meet in person once or twice, but Iâve read SI regularly for about 35 years now, from the very beginning if you include my going through all the back issues when I started grad school. Once every couple of months, Iâve sat down with a new SI, and the first thing Iâve read has been his editorial. All that adds up. I, and many others, have greatly appreciated all that Kendrick Frazier has done, and all he has stood for.
Taner Edis
Although my interactions with Ken were somewhat sporadic and limited over the years, they were always pleasant and friendly. I greatly appreciated his enormous and valuable contribution to science and skepticism. His dedication to our shared cause was always exemplary. Thank you so much, Ken, for all that you did. A life well lived indeed.
Christopher French
I always counted Ken as a friend and regarded him as one of the most decent persons I’ve known in my life. He was a light of wisdom for the skeptical movement and will be sorely missed.
Massimo Pigliucci
(Written to Ken a week before he died)
Ken,
I am distressed to hear about your dire straits, but still hold out some hope for a (non-miraculous) result. Weird things happen, as you well know, and I hope youâll fight for a way out of this.
But what I really wanted to say was thank you â in two ways.
On behalf of the general population (yes, Iâll speak for them), thanks for all your work in our skeptical world. Skeptical Inquirer was my entry into this world, and Iâve leaned hard on it for 35 years now. Itâs still the gold standard for science-looks-at-the-incredible. The quality youâve maintained all these years have made the work of all your emissaries that much easier.
On behalf of myself, I thank you for your early words of encouragement and help. Over two decades ago, you saw my passion for critical thinking and answering wacky claims, and you stoked the fires within. A little reinforcement from someone of your stature went a long way toward my believing I could contribute to our (collective) work. Youâll always have my appreciation for that.
As a bonus, it was a delight for me and my wife Karen to spend little slices of time with you and Ruth over the years. We greatly enjoy your company and are gratified to know you and consider you both the salt of the earth.
I wish I could take up some of your battle, but Iâm afraid itâs going to be on your shoulders and whatever scientific medicine can do for you.
Youâre welcome to some of my blood if you can use it. Iâm O+, and Iâll lay off the whiskey and cigars before I donate.
Give our love to Ruth and your family.
With great affection and lifelong appreciation,
Jim Underdown
Jim Underdown
CFI West
CFIIG
It is so sad to learn that another light of the skeptical movement has gone out. Ken was a true pillar of modern skepticism and we will miss him badly.
I was lucky enough to have met him at the beginning of my skeptical voyage, when I was just 20, at the end of the 1980âs, and I have been fortunate to continue collaborating with him all this time.
It was a true emotion, in 2018, to have been able to bring Randi, Ray, Jim Alcock and Ken on the same stage with me to remember the beginnings of CSICOP. The last time these giants were all together.
We will all miss Ken, but we can find some solace in the fact that he knew he had spent his life well. Just as Leonardo da Vinci once said: “As a well spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well used brings a happy death”.
Massimo Polidoro
Ken was a respected colleague and very good friend. He was a staunch advocate of science and reason, and responsible for the success of Skeptical Inquirer magazine that he edited so well for so many years. He also was a fellow member of the CFI Board of Directors, and helped me understand my important responsibilities when I first joined that team. I miss him already, and my deepest condolences go out to his stalwart partner in love and life, Ruth, and all his family and friends.
Brian Engler
Hello Ken,
Despite the distance between our two countries, we have over time discussed what is critical thinking and we share this particular approach which makes us skeptics. And in the face of the disease that strikes you, if the words are difficult to find, I am wholeheartedly with you in this moment. You have to know that your work as editor of the Skeptical Inquirer is a total success and is particularly appreciated by French skeptics and the quality of your magazine amply attests to this. As a CSI Fellow, I also want to speak for all the readers of the S.I. that the library of the Zetetics Analysis Center in France has the honor to make available to them, colleagues and students of the Faculty of Sciences of Nice. With all my respect for your immense work,
And with my sincere friendship,
Henri Broch
Physicist UniversitĂ© CĂŽte d’Azur, FranceHenri Broch
âTime, like a ceaseless wind crying through the universe carries away the names and the deeds of conquers and commoners alike, and all that we are, all that remains, is in the hearts and memories of those that cared we came this way for a brief moment.â
-Harlan Ellison
David Lyons
Thank you, Ken, for the many years you enthusiastically gave as a champion of scientific reasoning. I also must say thanks for helping me prepare manuscripts for the Septical Inquirer. Although it was twenty years ago, your counseling freed me from feeling guilty about poking a stick in the eye of pseudoscientists. I always knew it was fun, but you clarified that doing so was a necessary component of responsible science education.
Frank W. Reiser
In the name of the Belgian skeptics organization SKEPP I want to express our condolence for Ken Frazierâs decease.
I had the privilege to meet Ken a few times, during international skeptical meetings, and to have some short but pleasant talks with him.
However, a lot of skeptics in the world know hilm as the editor of the Skeptical Inquirer, which became a real monument thanks to his work. For the many faithful readers, he was a fellow fighter, a comrade in the hard and nearly endless struggle for science and reason during all those years.
Tim Trachet
Baruch dayan haemet, may his memory always be for a blessing.
Rabbi Gershon Steinberg-Caudill
Ken – You made me a better writer, you made me a better reader and you made me a better editor.
Terence Hines
Thank you for being a stalwart of reason.
Lylene Mason
I was entering my front door when I read Barry Karr’s e-mail informing that Kendrick Frazier had died. It had been a tough day at the newspaper, with some unpleasantness, but nothing compared to the shock of the sad news. Since then, I have not stopped thinking about Ken, how much I admired him, how much I enjoyed his and his dear Ruth’s conversation in an Italian hotel bar too many years ago. Since then, I have not stopped thinking about how much we will miss him.
I would have liked to have known Ken better. We both shared a profession, journalism; a passion, promoting skepticism; and points of view. I have admired his work since the day I first opened a copy of ‘The Skeptical Inquirer’. As a journalist who knows how hard it is to make a magazine, I have always admired the very high standard of his work. It’s hard to imagine how difficult it is to maintain the quality of a magazine like ‘The Skeptical Inquirer’ for more than four decades.
Ken was also a pioneer. He joined CSICOP in the 1970s. Then, spreading critical thinking, asking for proof of extraordinary claims, was heroic in a world full of flying saucers, paranormal powers, mysterious disappearances and other ‘phenomena’ that sold a lot of books and hours of radio and television. The pioneers of modern skepticism – Ken among them – warned us of the dangers of a society incapable of distinguishing facts from lies. It took a pandemic and political leaders such as Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Jair Bolsonaro for the mass media to start warning of the risk to democratic societies of a disinformation that they themselves had nurtured for decades.
Our present is the future that Ken and other pioneers feared. Unfortunately, they are no longer here to guide us. We have their message and we have an obligation: to try to leave a more rational world to those who succeed us, as Ken did until the end.Thank you, Ken.
Luis Alfonso GĂĄmez
From myself and on behalf of members of ASKE, the Association for Skeptical Enquiry. Thank you so much for your support and encouragement over the years. We will miss you.
Michael Heap
Always in our hearts.
Nedzad Silic
Thank you for all your hard work Ken! You will be missed. Our material understanding of reality is cemented into a block of solid concrete, like a funeral stone. There is nothing outside of that funeral stone. Long live all things material and solid, like sports cars, toys and candy. There is nothing outside of the material, we know this and itâs comforting a thought. Long live material scientific thoughts!
Charles Monroe
I never had the pleasure of meeting Ken, but I feel I’ve known him from afar. I’ve been a member of CFI since very near the beginning, and a subscriber to SI since those early days. I can say only how comforted I was every couple of months to see Ken’s name at the bottom of the “From The Editor” page, in each issue. His clear, easy writing style â no less the substance of what he wrote, there and elsewhere â was a great influence on my own career as rational thinker, and as an editor myself. The skeptical community, but more importantly the world itself, is certainly a better place for having had Ken in it, and how much more can one ask than that?
Steven Goldstein
Years ago, when I was in high school, I wrote a letter to Mr. Frazier to ask about a purported UFO sighting in a park near me. He wrote back a very friendly personal response; I still have his letter. Thank you, Mr. Frazier!
Lorraine
Ken was one of the nicest and brightest people I have ever known. And it is so fortunate for us all that he took on the editorship of Zetetic/SI way back in the day. While we all admire Paul the organizer, Randi the exposer of charlatans, and Ray the scientist, it is Ken, as editor of SI, who has in my opinion been the actual helmsman of the skeptical movement all these years. His steady hand, his wisdom and his respect for others shines through in every issue of SI, and it is SI more than anything else that has united skeptics around the world and built the skeptical movement.
James Alcock
I was an avid reader of his work in the Skeptical Inquirer so I consider him one of my fine teachers. I loved his work. He taught me a lot. I very much appreciate.
Abraham Carnow
It feels as though it’s (still) so soon after Tom Flynn’s death . . . and, now, this–such a loss to those of us who knew and worked with Ken. I wish I’d had the opportunity to meet him, in person, during my time at the Center for Inquiry. I remember him as always being quick to help when I, as an assistant editor, wasn’t sure how best to proceed as well as quick to praise good work performed by me or his other colleagues “back east”. He is yet another person who serves as a model for me as to how to deal with my own colleagues and clients with grace and humility. (And he remained available even when on vacation–amazing!)
David Park Musella
As a longtime reader of SI, I always looked forward to Mr. Frazier’s articles: His was a voice of well-reasoned sanity, calling out the deceivers and grifters, yet tempered with affection and an appreciation for the many foibles we irrational creatures are heir to.
My sincere sympathy to Mr. Frazier’s family and friends.
Linda Ferrazzara
Ken Frazier was an inspiration to me from the time I first subscribed to Skeptical Inquirer as a graduate student in the 1970s to our recent collaboration in publishing Carl Saganâs lost speech. In between, he made SI a beacon in the movement for science, reason, and humanism, and inspired countless scientists, humanists, and readers. And he did it all with great warmth and good cheer.
Steven Pinker
I have subscribed to Skeptical Inquirer since it was a quarterly publication back in the early 1980’s. It was always a high quality publication. Kendrick Frazier and I had a number of nice e-mail exchanges over the years. He was nice enough to publish many of my letters to Skeptical Inquirer.
Dennis Middlebrooks
I never had the privilege of meeting Ken Frazier but I read everything he wrote in Skeptical Inquirer and he responded with kindness and generosity to my letters or comments and I knew he was a good man as well as a great advocate for science and truth.
Nigel Bark
When I first found and read Skeptical Inquirer I knew that I had found a magazine for me. It had the level of writing, thinking, and science for which I had been seeking. I found the articles that Kendrick wrote to be thoughtful and inspiring. I am sure that Skeptical Inquirer will be hard pressed to replace him.
Wilfred Lyon
I was very sorry to hear about the passing of Ken Frazier. He was a tireless advocate for the necessity of encouraging scientific and rational literacy. His voice and his contributions will be sorely missed.
Eric Sotnak
Thank you.
Noah Klein
I personally met Ken Frazier, a warm and admirable person. He was at a Skeptics Congress held in Abano-Terme, Italy (2004). I remember that after my presentation, we had a nice and joking discussion with Ken, James Randi and other people.
Alejandro Borgo
My condolences to his family.
An unforgettable being passed away.
I submitted manuscripts to Skeptical Inquirer more than once. During that time – spanning more than ten years – Ken graciously served as Editor-in-Chief. I always welcomed his comments. I admired his devotion to science and skepticism, his pursuit of truth, and his tireless commitment to enhance science education and public outreach. My admiration for his work will live on.
Manfred Cuntz
I’m deeply saddened to hear of Ken’s death. I worked with him in the past and found him to be inspirational, compassionate, and always kind. Ken was synonymous with Skeptical Inquirer and he is indeed irreplaceable. My sincere condolences to his family.
Karen S
My memories of Ken go back even longer than his association with CSICOP/CFI, to when he was editor of Science News, to which I have subscribed since even before he was editor of that. Over the years while he was editor of SI, I have written a few articles and quite a few letters that Ken edited, always with gentle compassion and improving them substantially. Sadly, he will be missed editing an article currently in preparation which I had hoped Ken would approve and improve with his gentle style.
Alan Harris
I never met Ken in person, but growing up in the Four Corners, and having hiked all the main sites at Chaco, and besides Mesa Verde and Canyon de Chelly, also having done a few of the slightly less common Anasazi sites, I also remember him as a writer about and photographer of their world, in his “People of Chaco,” as well as a leader in modern skepticism.
Steve Snyder
I am stunned and deeply saddened by news of the passing of Ken Frazier. This news just took my breath away as I read it in the Morning Heresy.
I am pleased that I had the opportunity to meet him in person at one of the CSIcop conventions in Las Vegas. I was impressed by his kind, gentle demeanor and his intelligence. I have published a few articles in the Skeptical Inquirer, and his guidance and encouragement were greatly appreciated. Even though I have an odd personal habit of frequently reading magazines from the end to the beginning, I always read Ken Frazier’s âFrom the Editorâ commentary at the beginning of each Skeptical Inquirer first!! His perspectives in these comments are astute and enlightening, and he expresses his appreciation for contributorsâ efforts in the most supportive way.
I extend personal condolences to his immediate family members and to his friends and colleagues in the world who will never forget him.
Sincerely,
Jeanne Goldberg
My deepest sympathies to Kendrick Frazierâs family and friends.
Although I knew Ken primarily through SI magazine, I had the distinct honour of speaking with him at some meetings at CFI Headquarters in Amherst, N.Y. What I recall from when I met Ken for the first time – this giant of science journalism, who has been recognized for his âeffective worldwide advancement of rational skepticismâ – was his humility and kindness.
Ken was an inspiration, and a wonderful ambassador and champion, for science and reason.
Richard G L Thain, Humanist Ottawa
The skeptical community has lost a heavyweight sooner than expected. I will miss someone I had turned to for advice when it required a deep knowledge of science-related issues and skepticism. Coming from Europe, I had looked forward so much to meeting him and his wife Ruth in Las Vegas this year after a long time. Alas, it was not to be. It now remains on us to carry his legacy worldwide.
Ken was the epitome of the skeptic. I viewed him as the backbone of the skeptical movement in the US for almost half a century while not seeking the limelight. Beyond that, he was an inspiration well beyond the Americas.
My wife and I have lost a dear friend, and it is still hard for us to come to terms with the thought that he is no longer among us. Our thoughts are with Ruth and the rest of the family.
Amardeo Sarma
Ken was just so great. He was always so supportive. I try to emulate his ability to disagree graciously and constructively.
I also admire deeply Ken’s long commitment to making the world a better place by promoting science and reason. I developed a class project that involved reviewing the early issues of Skeptical Inquirer. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the new editor for the third installment of Skeptical Inquirer in Fall/Winter 1977 was Kendrick Frazier. Truly amazing.
There is absolutely no doubt that Ken improved the lives of the people who knew him. Ken’s work also prevented innumerable people from being exposed to harm, even while those people know nothing about skepticism or Ken Frazier. What on Earth could be more praiseworthy than that?
Craig Foster
We owe Ken a lot for his efforts to stamp out falsehood!
John Curran
Ken Frazier’s unexpected death is a terrible loss, first and foremost for his wife and family and then for the rest of us at CSI. He built the Skeptical Inquirer into a publication of worldwide influence and leadership in the task of bringing critical thinking to issues of wide public interest.
Lee Nisbet
On a personal level, his unexpected untimely death is deeply shocking and terribly sad. As a founding member and fellow of CSI, its first Executive Director and Executive Council member for over thirty years I have known Ken for almost a half century. Ken was not only a smart and talented science journalist and editor but an unpretentious, fair-minded , warm high character human being. Given the controversial nature of our subject matters it would be easy to personalize disagreements and degenerate into polarizing nastiness. Not Ken! Criticism yes, personal attacks no. Ken’s editorship provided stellar advertisement for our organization. My wife and I will miss you Ken. Your legacy is top shelf. Your death is very painful. So long Amigo.
I had a unique relationship with Ken in that for several years he was both my boss (as a member of the board) and my subordinate (as editor of SI) — though the latter relationship was more theoretical than real. The only comments I ever made to Ken about his SI work were to commend him for the consistently excellent issues he produced. Ken had complete independence as editor because, among other things, no one could improve on his judgment. Ken was reliable, intelligent, professional — dedicated to his work and the mission of CFI. His personal warmth, even temper, and prudence made him a a wonderful colleague, and these qualities were invaluable as he helped guide CFI through some turbulent times.
Ronald Lindsay
I was enormously saddened by Ken Frazier’s passing. The task of
making Skeptical Inquirer a haven of sanity in an insane world was a
huge challenge but for 45 years nobody could have done it better. His
reactions to my own submissions over 30 years were always kind,
courteous, and models of reason. If angels have controversies they
had better watch out.My condolences to you and your staff,
Geoffrey Dean
I met Ken and Ruth only a few times in my life but always felt that I knew them well. Oddly he had accepted an article of mine just before he got his diagnosis, so I am happy to have been in touch with him so recently
Susan Blackmore
Ken was a great editor â always kind in suggesting improvements or changes to what I wrote and always encouraging. I will miss his guiding hand.
I was so very sorry to hear of Ken’s death. He was a great man and a very fine editor. I always enjoyed our conversations, too few in number, and our email correspondence. His ideas and comments, drawing from his amazingly broad knowledge base, were always incisive and accurate, and very frequently led to new insights and new ways of thinking about scientific issues. He had the gift of great rational assessment, and the ability to provide profound guidance in a truly encouraging manner. In my own Skeptical Inquirer manuscripts, his comments were always precisely on target and very helpful in improving the given article. Ken was a superb scholar and a truly outstanding human being. I will miss him enormously.
Matthew Sharps
I am saddened and shocked to learn of Ken’s passing. Just now, I was writing him a letter to include with our submission of a new manuscript and only learned of it when I got onto the SI website. It is shocking because, for so many years, Ken has been an important leader of the Scientific Skeptical movement. His guidance of SI over the years has kept it relevant, entertaining, and informative, providing an important resource for science-related information to a public, in desperate need of it. He is sorely missed, but his legacy lives on in his many contributions.
D. Alan Bensley
I was less than a blip on Ken’s radar, but he loomed large on mine. I probably read every one of his Editor’s statements and articles since I began subscribing to S.I. in 1980, and I interacted with him a bit when I published a review there and chatted with him at conferences. Few people I’ve met have struck me as he did: so positive, so nice, so intelligent. His impact on that publication, CFI, and the skeptical community, have been enormous, along with his impact on fostering critical reasoning in our culture.
Barry Markovsky
Very sad to hear this news, huge loss to the skeptic and scientific community.
Omar Meriwani (Real Sciences website)
I was deeply saddened to hear of Ken’s death last month. Ken was an outstanding editor and warm human being. And an avid Dodgers fan! I last saw him in August 2021 when we had lunch in Albuquerque on my drive back to Illinois to visit family and friends and, of course, he brought me a copy of “Skeptical Inquirer” hot off the press. We had a long lunch catching up the latest skeptic news and our activities. I also enjoyed following his Facebook posts of nature photography and travels with Ruth. I so enjoyed reading SI before, during and after I worked for the Center for Inquiry. His span of editing SI covers my span of learning about and embracing scientific skepticism. Kudos, Ken!
Bob Ladendorf
Kendrick Frazier and I met at Mariaâs Kitchen, a popular diner in Santa Fe, NM, in 1986 during the first open meeting for what came to be called New Mexicans for Science and Reason. Perhaps ten people I had never met before attended, including local Santa Fe businessman, John Smallwood, and Pen La Farge, son of the famous anthropologist and writer, Oliver La Farge. John, Pen, and I would become the core contacts for the Santa Fe branch of NMSR. I became known as the cult guy, due to my emerging reputation as a cult deprogrammer. Kenâs featured guest at Mariaâs was P. Premanand, a skeptic and a magician who traveled from India. Premanand was with his host, Dr. Malathi Bhat, who practiced medicine in Manhattan. Premanand and I hit it off when I discovered he was a major critic of Satya Sai Baba, who at the time had tens of millions of devotees in India and hundreds of thousands internationally. Premanand had sued the Indian government, claiming that Sai Babaâs miracles were no more than magic tricks and he could prove it. Indeed, Premanand demonstrated a few magic tricks right there at our table. One included manifesting Vibhuti, a sacred gray ash made from cow dung, from his hand as if from thin air. He showed us how Sai Baba did it. Premanand also made fire appear out of the palm of his hand just as our shocked waitress approached our table. That initial meeting began a productive relationship I had with Ken and NMSR, including our corroboration with Conroy Chino, a newsman from Albuquerque, who produced the television series âFaith, Fad, or Fiction?â about the New Age Movement in 1987. I was saddened to hear of Kenâs passing, but I remain happy that we met that day at Mariaâs. If there be saints among skeptics, Kendrick Frazier is certainly one of them.
Joseph Szimhart
Thank you for your happy brain!!
YUKIKO TANAKA
In all my experiences working with editors of periodicals or journals, I have never encountered one as warm, responsive, and genuinely enthusiastic about their work as Ken was. When I later met met at a CSICon reception, he was kind, attentive, and extremely encouraging about my work. He will certainly be the gold standard for those who carry on his mission.
Peter Marston
I never knew the man but he was obviously on my side so he must have been a thoroughly honest and decent man with a considerable intelligence
robert shrubsole