Father, TV and film writer, teacher

Paul Gronseth died on Sunday, July 27, in San Dimas. He was 77 years old. Paul was a pillar of the Claremont community for more than 40 years as a writer, teacher, and coach, as well as a beloved father, husband, and friend.

He was born to Oscar and Julia Gronseth on October 28, 1947, in Minot, North Dakota, a place that instilled his lifelong love for the landscapes and lore of the West. He grew up in Jacksonville, Illinois — or, as he liked to say, on a straight line between Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain. As a boy he dressed up as Hopalong Cassidy, delivered nasty southpaw curveballs from Little League mounds, and developed his passion for literature, history, and film.

After a year at UCLA, he attended St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, graduating in 1970. After serving in the U.S. Army and working a range of jobs — including deckhand on an Illinois River towboat and associate editor for the Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society — he moved back to Northfield where he painted houses in the warm months, wrote fiction in the cold months, and took up the sport of handball with characteristic vigor. “In Northfield Paul also started writing his magnum opus, ‘The Plainsman and Liar Ned Powdermaker,’” his family shared. “While the picaresque Western novel remains unpublished, it is the stuff of legend among family and friends who have read it.”

In 1984, he joined his friend and former college roommate Barry Morrow in Claremont to write screenplays. For more than two decades, the two collaborated on several film and television projects, including the 1995 film “Gospa,”starring Martin Sheen, which was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and Radio City Music Hall. In 2005, he began teaching at Carden Arbor View School in Upland. He taught math, public speaking, and English, designing his own course on American literature entitled “In Search of the American Character.” “He was admired by students, parents, and colleagues for his deep subject knowledge and sharp wit,” his family added. Paul retired in 2020.

In Claremont, he met, fell in love with, and married Mary Marvin, a fellow writer and Midwest transplant. Together, they raised two children, Dylan and Adrian (“Snowy”). Many happy family memories were made in Claremont, as well as on summer vacations to the Midwest and Pacific Beach. He loved being involved in his sons’ activities, particularly youth sports. He coached and co-coached more than a dozen different teams in Claremont Little League and Claremont Youth Basketball, teaching a generation of Claremont boys how to throw a curveball, run a fast break, and play the game with respect and good sportsmanship. For nearly 40 years, he was a fixture on the handball courts at The Claremont Club, consistently hitting the hardwood at least three times a week. He loved to watch movies at the Laemmle Theater, never hesitating to walk out of a clunker. He could often be found gardening in the backyard and reading voraciously, always searching for the elusive American character.

He is survived by his wife, Mary Marvin; and sons Dylan Gronseth, of Claremont, and Adrian (Juli) Gronseth of Iowa City, Iowa; sister Ginny (Ed) Mullahy of Needham, Massachusetts; nieces Anne (Henri) Meilleur of Lunenberg, Massachusetts, and Karen Mullahy of Newton, Massachusetts; as well as several cousins, great-nephews, and in-laws.

A celebration of his life will be held at 2 p.m. this Saturday, August 2, at Claremont Presbyterian Church, 1111 N. Mountain Ave., Claremont, CA 91711.

To share a memory about Paul, please visit memories.meadowmemorials.com/page/Paul-Howard-Gronseth-2c38200d198542739a0298ba13518038.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his name to the United States Handball Association at ushandball.org/make-a-contribution.