Deborah Pellow

Deborah Pellow (March 21, 1945 – May 29, 2025) was an American anthropologist. She was a professor and later, a professor emerita at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. She was known for her work on urbanization and the anthropology of space and place in West Africa, particularly in Ghana.

Early life and education Born in Los Angeles to Frieda Kaplan and David Pellow, she grew up in New York City and Philadelphia. She attended the Akiba Academy in Center City, Philadelphia. Deborah Pellow received her bachelor’s degree in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1967.

Personal life and death Deborah Pellow was first married to the American philosopher, Irving Thalberg Jr. (1930–1987), the son of 1920s and 1930s Hollywood producer Irving Thalberg and Academy Award-winning actress Norma Shearer. After her husband's death, Pellow married in 1991, the American mystery writer, David Cole (1936–2015). She served on the boards of The Friends of Chamber Music, and the non-profit, Francis House, a home for the terminally-ill. A memorial service for Deborah Pellow was held at the Hendricks Chapel on the campus of Syracuse University on September 12, 2025.

Selected awards and honors Lifetime Achievement Award, Critical Urban Anthropology Association (CUAA) (2021) William Wasserstrom Prize for the Teaching of Graduate Students (2019) Faculty Advisor of the Year Award (2016) A New African Elite: Place in the Making a Bridge Generation, United Kingdom: Berghahn Books (2022) Setting Boundaries: The Anthropology of Spatial and Social Organization, editor and author. Westport CT: Bergin and Garvey (1996) Ghana: Coping with Uncertainty, with Naomi Chazan Boulder: Westview Press (1986) Women in Accra: Options for Autonomy Algonac, MI: Reference Publications, Inc. (1977)