In Memoriam: Thomas M. Celner Lighting&Sound America has only recently learned of the death, in February 2020, of lighting industry figure and educator Thomas M. Celner in Glenview, Illinois. He was 58. Born in Rockford, Illinois, he attended school there and graduated from the Goodman Theater School at DePaul University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in technical theatre. He spent years touring with various concert touring acts, working in film and television and Broadway. (He was lighting programmer Dracula, the Musical (2004) and Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life (2005). When the time came to settle down a bit and raise a family he moved into the design, programming, and management of the consoles that controlled the computerized lights. From 1985 - 2002, he was, variously, a technician, senior consultant, and product specialist at Vari-Lite. He then spent two years as senior staff lighting designer at the global events firm Production Plus. In 2005 and 2006, he was an associate product manager and training specialist at ETC, handling the Eos family of consoles, followed by eight-and-a-half years as a product manager at PRG. During that time, he handled V676 console and its siblings and project-managed the development and technical support of consoles used at the Olympics, Academy Awards, the Super Bowl Halftime Show, the Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, and tours with such acts as Britney Spears and Madonna. Celner returned to Production Plus in 2015 for a brief stint as senior designer then worked for a short time at Morpheus Lights as new business manager. In 2017, he became adjunct professor of modern lighting technology and visual communication at De Paul University, a position he held at the time of his death. Until 2018, he continued to work as a freelance lighting programmer. Celner was predeceased by his wife, Lisabeth Rohlck and his parents. He is survived by this Aidan and Jonathan as well his brothers Stand (Lori) and Tim (Anne), and nieces and nephews. 
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