A Renaissance man: in memoriam of Jon Widom (1955-2011).

It was a complete shock to learn that Jon Widom had died of a massive heart attack on July 18, 2011 at the age of 55. I first met Jon back in 1990 when he was on the Faculty at the University of Illinois while I was looking for my first position in the States, and last saw him just a month before his death. Jon had not changed much during those twenty-plus years: he oozed wit, elegance and cool. As always, he looked like the picture of health.