Friends, family remember Kato as happy, 'unconventional'

A heart attack killed IU graduate student Gordon E. Kato, 45, last week, according to an obituary sent from his family. He was found dead in his bedroom at his off-campus home Tuesday, said Monroe County Coroner David W. Toumey.\nGordon Kato, who was studying social psychology at IU, will be cremated and taken back to his hometown of Wailuku, Maui, in Hawaii, said Jim Sherman, professor of psychological and brain sciences and Gordon Kato's faculty adviser.\nTears dripped from the cheeks of several of Kato's family and friends at a memorial service Sunday. About 100 people attended the service at Mathers Museum in remembrance of his bright personality and life.\nThe service was mixed with laughter as thoughts of Kato triggered memories of his ability to "find pleasure in absurdities," said Kato's friend Karl Jacoby, of New York City.\n"I remember Gordon growing up, and everything he did was, well, unconventional," said Sandra Collins, Kato's cousin. "Gordon always marched to a different drummer -- and bravo for that."\nKato's sister, Pam Klebanov, recalled earlier days of Kato's love for music, especially for The Beatles and The Monkees, and how he would strap a cardboard guitar to himself while singing the songs.\n"Life was never boring with Gordon around," she said.\nKato's mother, Barbara Kato, said her son had an unique personality.\n"I wish he could have lived longer. He really loved life," she said. "He would never bore you. He would always think of things to excite you."\nGordon Kato's brother-in-law, Igor Klebanov, read letters from Kato's other friends that described everything from his "black lampshade of hair" to his affinity for wearing shorts in November.\nAfter numerous speakers, fellow graduate student Elise Percy Hall performed a song they wrote for Kato and friends and family presented a slideshow of pictures of him.\nAudience members smiled and laughed as pictures displaying Gordon Kato's animated, carefree and childlike character flashed on the screen.\n"You could trust Gordon with just about anything," said graduate student John Petrocelli. "That's just the kind of guy he was. And he never expected a thing in return."\nKato received his undergraduate degree in experimental psychology from the University of Michigan in 1986 and his master's degree in education from Harvard in 1987. He then spent more than 10 years in New York City in the publishing industry, according to the obituary. He created his own talent and literary agency in 1994 and was honored in a special tribute to the 500 Most Influential Asian Americans published by Avenue Asia magazine for his work from 1996-98 as a literary agent.