Arts Hall of Fame Inductees 2023
Carole Wagner Mallory, Class of 1959
Carole Wagner Mallory’s beloved Springfield High School was her safe haven. In 1955, her father was given an unnecessary surgery during which doctors discovered he had Parkinson’s Disease. During this difficult time, Carole joined many activities while in high school to keep herself busy and surround herself with positivity. She was a cheerleader, member of National Honors Society, band, orchestra, Future Teachers of America, and Future Farmers of America, played basketball, lacrosse, and hockey, was art editor of the yearbook, and candidate for May Queen.
Carole credits Springfield High School in saving her during what could have been an even more challenging high school career. She was awarded an art scholarship to Penn State University and was also a finalist for Miss Penn State. After graduating in three years, Carole taught at Lower Merion and then Springfield Junior High. In 1963, she became a Pan Am stewardess but soon changed careers and began modeling in Paris where her first job was for French Vogue. In March of 1971, she was on the covers of Cosmopolitan, New York Magazine, and Newsweek earning the title supermodel. She also became known for her numerous commercials and coined the phrase “all my men wear English Leather, or they wear nothing at all,” which launched her film career.
In 1971, she met Claude Picasso, Pablo’s son, and two years later they were wed. In 1975, Carole’s film career began with the iconic Stepford Wives portraying a wife and later starred in other films, including Looking for Mr. Goodbar. In 1980, Carole recognized and accepted her alcohol dependence and, in an effort to become sober, began recording her life. Carole then studied with Margaret Atwood at New York University, met her mentor Norman Mailer, and during this time published six books including Flash, Picasso’s Ghost, My Friendship with Kurt Vonnegut and Joseph Heller, and Loving Mailer. Carole also interviewed numerous international celebrities, such as, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Gore Vidal, Jesse Jackson, and Joseph Kennedy to name a few. In 2008, Harvard University purchased Carole’s archive of writings with Mailer’s editing assistance.
Today Carole lectures at senior communities about her life experiences and is proud of being 43 years sober. Carole is grateful for this honor while contemplating her next challenge.
Leza Raffel, Class of 1985
Leza Raffel’s fate as a communications professional was sealed in ninth grade when she discovered three amazing things within Springfield High School:
Discovery #1: Mrs. Goebel’s Communication Elective class where she learned that people could actually major in Communications in college, an amazing concept!
Discovery #2: The video production club run by Dr. Jeff Benton where students could shoot and edit their own materials.
Discovery #3: A tiny cable access studio on the first floor of the old high school that was rented by American Community Cablevision. Apparently, anyone with a decent proposal could host their own cable access show there and that was exactly what Leza did, for all four years of high school.
With that strong SHS foundation in place, Leza attended and graduated from Ithaca College with honors as a Communications major in 1989 and launched her strategic public relations firm – the Communication Solutions Group –two years later. Since then, Communication Solutions has been recognized by the Philadelphia Business Journal’s “Philly 100” multiple times as one of the region’s fastest growing, privately-owned companies. Leza also received Pennsylvania’s “Best 50 Women in Business Award.” Her company is a Certified Women’s Business Enterprise and Leza is committed to empowering women as both an employer and mentor. Communication Solutions has earned a stellar reputation for its strategic and crisis communications services and Leza has been invited to conduct media training workshops all over the country, with her most recent class taught at UCLA last month.
Leza also serves as a Professional in Residence at Ithaca College, where she teaches crisis communication classes. Most recently, she endowed a scholarship for females showing leadership potential at her college alma mater. When not working, Leza serves on the Board of Directors at Temple Shalom Broomall and Ithaca College Hillel. She lives with her husband in Abington, PA and loves to visit her 24-year old son in LA, where he is working in TV and film production.