Marcus, Irwin

Dr. Irwin M. Marcus was a prominent, pioneering psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who was born in Chicago, Illinois, on March 18, 1919. Though he spent the majority of his historic, 65-year medical career in New Orleans, Louisiana, his foundational years and medical training were completely rooted in Chicago. He passed away peacefully on October 3, 2021, at the age of 102. 

Chicago Roots and Education

Dr. Marcus grew up in Chicago and successfully put himself through higher education during the height of the Great Depression. His academic milestones in the city include:

• Illinois Institute of Technology: Completed his undergraduate college studies.
• University of Illinois School of Medicine: Earned his Doctor of Medicine degree.
• Cook County Hospital: Completed his medical residency at this famed Chicago landmark, which was one of the largest teaching hospitals in the United States.

Military Service and Career

While still in his third year of medical school in Chicago, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The very next day, Marcus enlisted in the U.S. Army. He rose to the rank of captain in the Army Medical Corps, where he treated brain injuries and wounded American soldiers in France during World War II.

After volunteering for the Army, he served with an evac hospital during World War II as Chief of head injury trauma, and after the war was founding president of the Child/Adolescent Department at Tulane University Medical School, as well as a number of professional organizations.

In 1951, he relocated to New Orleans, where he established the child and adolescent psychiatry program at Tulane University School of Medicine. He became a widely recognized national expert, authoring multiple books on marriage counseling, child psychiatry, and sex therapy.

Named one of the ten most outstanding persons in New Orleans by the Family Service Society, he has published four books and 80 articles. 

Personal Life

Dr. Marcus's initial ties to Chicago's political landscape were fortified by his first marriage to Dorothy Elrod, the sister of notable Chicago politician and judge Richard Elrod. Following Dorothy's passing, he was married for 21 years to the celebrated former New Orleans journalist and WWL-TV news anchor, Angela Hil.