All of us in the UVA Arts community mourn the loss and celebrate the life of Mortimer Caplin, who passed away on July 15, just days after marking his 103rd birthday. His was a truly classic American life, full of real-life heroism. Caplin’s service to his country put him on the shores of Normandy for the D-Day invasion and for many dangerous months to follow. At home, he continued his service to his country as an appointee of President John F. Kennedy, for whom he led the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Caplin would go on to teach for 33 years at the UVA Law School, where he had finished first in his class in 1940, and co-founded the influential Washington, D.C. law firm Caplin & Drysdale, where he earned a stellar reputation as a "tough but fair" tax attorney. He exemplified the ideal of giving back, and fortunately for all of us at UVA, the "Double Hoo" was a tireless advocate on behalf of the University from which he also earned a bachelor's degree in 1937. It was during his UVA years that Mortimer Caplin fell in love with the arts. He was a boxer during his college years, and during the off-season, he told The Daily Progress in 2010, he was part of the Drama Department and served as president of the Virginia Players. "And, for about 30 seconds," he said, "I was encouraged to even go to Broadway to apply for a part that involved a violinist who becomes a boxer." He may not have gone out for that part, but he continued to play a major role in the arts at UVA throughout his life, supporting the Department of Drama, the Dance Program, the Heritage Theatre Festival, and founding the UVA Arts Council, leaving a lasting legacy in the form of a state-of-the-art theatre named for the love of his life, his late wife, Ruth Sacks Caplin. The Ruth Caplin Theatre, which opened in 2013, provides audiences with a wonderfully intimate three-quarter thrust theatre experience while allowing students to enjoy the best in technological advancement to prepare them for the future. At the groundbreaking in 2010, Caplin said, "We wanted to give something to the college and community, and the arts are an important part of life and should be enjoyed by all. My wife and I both have a love for the arts – she participated in the arts for all of her life through painting, sculpting, and dance – and we have a great love for UVA.” In 2016, the Heritage Theatre Festival opening in the Ruth Caplin Theatre was an even more special family affair. Following a birthday toast with friends and family in the Helms Theatre, Mortimer and the Caplin party walked across the Drama building lobby to the Ruth Caplin Theatre to see Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins, directed by none other than Mortimer and Ruth’s daughter, Cate Caplin.