New York-born Jack Ayers spent his childhood acting on Broadway and some of his professional career working alongside the ad men of Madison Avenue. But he chose Atlanta as his home, after a job-related transfer moved him from the Big Apple to the Peach State.
“He loved to travel the world,” said Cameron Adair, a friend of more than 40 years. “He liked Atlanta and decided to stay, even after he retired. And he’d go all over, but he’d always come back to Atlanta.”
Jack Ellis Ayers died Aug. 16 from complications of a fall at his Buckhead residence. He was 82. A memorial celebration is scheduled from 3 until 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Hallmark Buckhead, where he lived. H.M. Patterson & Son-Spring Hill Chapel was in charge of the cremation.
Twice married and divorced, Ayers did not have any children, but he had numerous friends. Some were from his college days at the University of Pennsylvania, others from his days in advertising, and then there were the people he’d meet every day, said Adair, who lives in Atlanta.
He added that Ayers “definitely had a wonderful personality, and I dare say that helped him along in his advertising career.”
Ayers’ time on Broadway spanned from when he was 7 until he was 14, friends said. He kept the playbills from his numerous shows, but he never bragged about it, said Martha Ann Barnett, a friend of nearly 30 years.
“He didn’t want to be an actor, really. He wanted to go to an Ivy League school, specifically the University of Pennsylvania,” she said. “And it drove him into a fit when people didn’t know the difference between the University of Pennsylvania and Penn State.”
Using money he made from his acting, Ayers put himself through college and graduated from his dream school in 1953, a fact that he was very proud of, Barnett said. While at Penn, he tapped his acting roots and was a member of the Mask and Wig Club, an all-male comedy troupe, which he continued to support over the years.
“He’d try to get them to make a stop in Atlanta when they were on spring tour,” said Adair, a Penn grad. “He was also very involved with the Atlanta chapter of the alumni club, and that connection was very important to him.”
An Army veteran, Ayers worked in radio and television production during his service, which is likely what led him to advertising, friends said. After several years in the business, Ayers retired from the day-to-day advertising world and became a consultant. He also explored other interests he had, such as cooking and sports.
“He was also a marvelous musician,” Barnett said. “He played the clarinet, and once a year he went to Germany for a big to-do.”
Though they never married, Ayers and Barnett were pretty much constant companions over the past 15 years, she said.
“He was just the most wonderful, brilliant man I know,” she said tearfully. “And he was a challenge to be with, a handful, I tell you. Every day he’s not here, I miss him so much, but at the same time, I thank God for blessing me with him, while he was here.”
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