Alfredo Matilla, a scholar, poet and novelist who for 23 years was a professor in the UB Department of American Studies, died March 29 in Puerto Rico. He was 63.

A UB faculty member from 1972-95 and chair of the Department of American Studies from 1991-95, at the time of his death Matilla was a professor of English and Spanish at the University of Puerto Rico.

He was the well-established and critically recognized Latin-American author of several books, including a historical/biographical chronicle, "El Espanolito y el espia," cited by literary critics as one of the most important books of 1999 by a Latin-American author. At the time of his death, he was writing a sequel.

	Matilla

He also was a nationally known poet and short-fiction writer and served as a producer, writer, actor and consultant for 15 short independent films.

Among his edited works was a collection of theater criticism by his father, Alfred Matilla Jimeno, a classical musician who, along with Picasso and Pablo Casals, was a leading exile from Spain after the Spanish Civil War. His father later became a member of the faculty of the University of Puerto Rico and was a leading theater critic in Puerto Rico.

Matilla was the co-founder and sub-director of the National Center for the Arts in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and served on the editorial board of several Latino and Chicano- or Hispano-American literary publications.

Matilla often said he was Spanish by birth, Puerto Rican by choice. He earned his doctorate in Spanish literature magna cum laude in 1967 from New York University and held a master's degree from NYU and a bachelor's degree from the University of Puerto Rico, both cum laude.

He joined UB after teaching briefly at Long Island University, Vassar College, Goucher College and Brooklyn College.

He served UB as director of the graduate program in Puerto Rican studies and the Overseas Academic Program in Puerto Rico, chair and director of the graduate program of the Department of American Studies and adjunct professor of the Bilingual Program in the Graduate School of Education.

He had been a member of the Committee on Hispanic Affairs in the State of New York and Western New York Hispanic Arts Advisory Council, co-founder of the Latin Artists' Coalition, contributing writer for the Western New York Spanish-language weekly "El Hispano," director of the Latino Theater Workshop, a volunteer weekly lecturer at Attica State Correctional Facility and instructor in the American Studies Master of Arts Program at Auburn Correctional Facility.

Matilla is survived by his wife, Luz Myriam Tirado, associate professor of English at the University of Puerto Rico, and two sons, Alfredo, 24, and Diego, 19.

Matilla's life and work will be commemorated by poet and playwright Pedro Pietri in a presentation at 2 p.m. on Wednesday in Room 330 of the Student Union on the North Campus.