For Just A Smile, Dr. Greenberg Would Gleefully Entertain You

Admission into the Greenberg home meant showing Dr. Alex Greenberg your teeth. Not too high a price to pay to be entertained by a playfully eccentric man who recited at length Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" in Middle English.

With interests as varying as Latin, chemistry and dentistry, Dr. Greenberg was always an entertainer and a teacher, said Harvey Greenberg, the oldest of five sons. Dr. Greenberg, 77, died Monday morning at the Caroline Kline-Galland Home in Seward Park where he was recuperating from a broken hip.

Born in 1915 in New York City, Dr. Greenberg demonstrated his sharpness, skipping two grades in elementary school. He entered the City College of New York at age 15, earning a degree in English. He intended to teach English literature until he realized that he would be the same age as some of his students.

He then continued his studies at Columbia University, earning two more degrees, including one in pharmacy. Dr. Greenberg joined the army during World War II as a pharmacist, and was stationed at Fort Lawton in 1942. At a Saturday night dance, he met Tibe Hoda Stusser, whom he married in 1943.

He later earned a dentistry degree from the University of Oregon Dental School in 1946, and opened a practice the following year. Four years later, he posted a "Gone to Korean War" sign in his window as he volunteered for service.

When he returned to his office in 1953, Dr. Greenberg took down his sign and practiced dentistry until 1985, when he retired at age 70.

Dentistry was such a passion with Dr. Greenberg that he took his work home with him, his son said. He often fashioned false teeth for his patients, and performed free dental work for those who could not afford to pay. Among his most important teachings to his children, was to be fair to all people, regardless of position or possessions, Harvey Greenberg said.

Dentistry was only one interest. A Latin scholar, he would criticize at length Julius Caesar's writings in the "Gaelic Wars," saying he used poor sentence construction and overused the ablative absolute.

A Shakespearean buff, he also maintained a strong sense of humor when faced with operations to repair a broken hip, quoting "Macbeth" when nurses drew blood, said another son, Norman.

"Yeah, he was kind of eccentric," said Harvey Greenberg. "A person as cerebral as he was would always be considered eccentric."

Dr. Greenberg leaves his wife, Tibe; five sons, Harvey and Larry of Seattle, Norman of Mt. Vernon, Daniel of Brooklyn, and Jacob of Portland; a grandson, Adam; two brothers, Harry of Los Angeles, Dave Grover of Van Nuys and a sister, Ruth Spigal of Chapel Hill, N.C.

Funeral services were held yesterday.