Philip Kurjan

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January 20, 2023

Happy Birthday Phil! You are missed. I hope you are surrounded by all of the people and pets who were up there waiting for you.

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January 14, 2023

Philip's 75th birthday would have been next Friday, Jan. 20. I was hoping that we would get to celebrate his 75th and my 70th (a month ago) together, but obviously that didn't happen. When he was diagnosed at 69, I wasn't sure he'd make it to 70. But... more

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November 7, 2022

I met Phil in the early 2000's when he became more engaged in supporting local public benefit/non-profit organizations. He was so smart, very curious, and willing to take field trips and engage with local community leaders and his peers to learn more... more

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October 16, 2022

I met Dr. Phil at Consilium in 1988. I remember a quirky, kind and brilliant man who was so patient with all of my "first job out of college" questions for him. The pictures highlight what I remember best about Phil. A generous heart, big smile, and... more

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October 7, 2022

For the past few years, Philip has liked to tell a story from our childhood. I must have been about four and him about nine. We were living in a two story townhouse with a single bathroom upstairs. He would be walking upstairs to go to the bathroom... moreFor the past few years, Philip has liked to tell a story from our childhood. I must have been about four and him about nine. We were living in a two story townhouse with a single bathroom upstairs. He would be walking upstairs to go to the bathroom and I would rush past him, run into the bathroom, and lock myself in. He complained to our parents, but they just laughed. I always thought it was odd that he liked to tell this story, given that he lost in a race with a sister who at that time really was a “baby” sister. Another incident, at about the same time or within a couple of years, was some fun we had one Sunday morning, while our parents were sleeping in. I don’t remember whose idea it was, but Philip pinned up my hair (which was longish at the time) with every barrette I had. When our mother woke up, she was horrified because my hair was all tangled and she knew I’d be crying as she took all of them out. My favorite story has to do with Tuffy, the Boston Terrier puppy we got when I was 7 years old. I remember Philip, our mother, and me being in the living room and this cute little puppy would come running from the bathroom with the end of the toilet paper in her mouth and yards of it streaming behind her. The three of us would laugh. Then at least 30 years later, both of us were visiting our mother in Portland and Philip told us that he had taught Tuffy to do that and again we all laughed. I never figured out why he waited so long to tell us. Was he afraid of getting in trouble? When I had my Golden Retriever puppy Mika 20 years ago, she started pulling the toilet paper into the living room. I accused Philip of sneaking up to Seattle and teaching her to do it. He claimed innocence. My final story isn’t really about Philip, but it’s a fun one. Again we were visiting our mother in Portland. Philip was going off for a hike in the Columbia Gorge and I was doing something else, I don’t remember what. Out mother said “they’ve remodeled the gorge”. Philip and I cracked up and our mother, rather angrily, asked what we were laughing at. I said (with difficultly due to laughing) “they didn’t remodel the gorge”. She said “yes they did”. When we both got home later that day, Philip told me that they’d remodeled Timberline Lodge. (Our mother grew up in NYC and I don’t think ever put foot on a trail.) Although it’s really a story about our mother, it’s provided a good joke between us in the years since. I’ll miss being able to share that joke with Philip anymore. Raj’s comment made me think of another story, wrt Philip’s beard. When he was a young adult, it had red highlights (one grandparent on each side had red hair and so did I until a number of years ago). As he grew older, the highlights turned gray. One time when he was buying take-out barbecue at a favorite Portland restaurant (he was in his mid-50s) he was given too much change. When he told the young woman at the checkout that, she said that she’d given him the senior discount. The beard got shaved off shortly after that incident. less

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Friends of Phil reacted on this.
Friends of Phil Such special memories! Funny that the senior discount drove him to shave his beard! When I think of his beard I think back to a business trip to Japan, our time there overlapped. The local Japanese people all wanted to touch his beard because it was... more
- October 7, 2022
Janet Kurjan He didn't like being taken for 65 when he was about 55 and thought the gray in his beard was the cause.
- October 8, 2022

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October 7, 2022

I first met Phil in 2002 when I joined Applied Materials. Soon he was my mentor and teacher at work. He had a knack of finding solutions to difficult technical problems and then making the effort of educating others. No wonder I see similar sentiments... more

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October 7, 2022 · via iPhone

By 1983, we had concluded that IBM could not be the right platform to build what later came to be known as Workstream. HP was the dominant business mini computer supplier of that era, but it already had a fab automation solution. So Digital Equipment... moreBy 1983, we had concluded that IBM could not be the right platform to build what later came to be known as Workstream. HP was the dominant business mini computer supplier of that era, but it already had a fab automation solution. So Digital Equipment (DEC) had to be the platform! However, none of us had any experience with DEC, not to mention the recently introduced VAX. We desperately needed people with DEC expertise. Then steps in Dr. Phil Kurjan, a Stanford physics major, hanging out at his advisor’s lab and consulting with an Australian scientific startup. He had concluded that his Physics degree was less valuable than the computer knowledge acquired during his lab work. He was looking for a local permanent employer.
His lanky figure, trademark beard, and authoritative voice impressed Ted Levine and me instantly. We worked out a short-term arrangement so he could support his Australian company but start with Consilium right away. He thus commerced his four decades of association with Consilium and later AMAT.
He was everything DEC to us - a system engineer, VAX administrator, CIO - though that term was not coined then, and VAX customer support.
In the era where IBM had established “full screen” data entry as the state-of-the-art UI in the business systems, Phil’s first task was to write a “screen driver” in the VAX assembly language. Soon, he built a driver that served Workstream, still called COMETS, until the end.
In many competitive deals, we had to show that we could handle the simultaneous data entry of dozens of users. Phil wrote a simulator that could provide quantitative data on COMETS performance, one of the primary reasons for National Semiconductor to select us. National’s $1.6M win over HP was the turning point for Consilium and COMETS. Every other company took notice of this new kid on the block.
Harris Semiconductor and Siemens were the subsequent significant wins. Harris wanted us to test the entire system on their computer during the sales cycle. We were given two days to travel to Melbourne, FL, to install and run tests. Phil and I traveled with a disk pack containing the COMETS code. I have never seen a person with a metabolic rate as high as Phil’s. He needed to take his lunch at the planned time. At lunchtime, we were still inside a computer room. No food was allowed. But Phil had an emergency packet of M&M stashed away in his trademark briefcase for exactly such an occasion.
Terry Leclair and I began organizing white water trips. Over the campfire, he declared that rafting was, in his opinion, too dangerous a sport for his risk profile. He would not have come but for his then-girlfriend, Mary, who was a fanatic rafter.
In the early nineties, HP switched to Unix and wanted us to port Workstream to Unix. Unix was the upcoming business OS that most of us favored. Phil was the lone holdout and, for years, refused even to learn it.
After the AMAT purchase, I lost touch for nearly two decades. I attended a SETI lecture at SRI six years ago. During Q&A, a person from behind asked a question in a voice that could only be Phil’s. He had changed - his beard was gone. His lanky young body had gained weight, but one could recognize him through his distinctive voice.
Sadly, I learned that he was diagnosed with cancer. The doctor gave given six to nine months. He wanted to make the most of the time by visiting European museums and attending concerts. His will, aided by modern medicine, extended his life from months into years. During that time, we also caught up over lunch and dinner.

Phil taught systems to many, but he taught me something that I try to practice even today. No matter how emotional or naive a debate was, he could explain the point calmly and logically.
If Spock turned into a System Engineer, he would look like Phil. less

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Friends of Phil Wow thank you Raj for sharing the details of Phil's early days at CSIM. The Spock analogy is perfect!
- October 7, 2022

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October 6, 2022 · via iPhone

Phil was incredibly kind and able to communicate complex technical info simply. He helped me with critiques of my work. He always made time to answer questions. His kindness had a positive impact not just on my work but on my life.

I remember with a... more

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October 4, 2022

I was a colleague of Phil's from the early days at Consilium. What an amazing person Phil was. He was oh so bright and able to share his knowledge with others, wherever they were in the learning curve. And, he had such a good sense of humor. Rest in peace, Phil.

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October 2, 2022

I was fortunate to meet "Dr. Phil" more than twenty five years ago through my wife Laura. Since then we got to see Phil on his frequent trips to Portland or our trips to the Bay Area. I truly admired his sense of adventure and his willingness... more

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October 2, 2022

I am very sorry to hear of Philip's death. For me he was the most impressive example I have ever seen of someone living with a dire medical diagnosis. In the face of devastating news, he just kept right on living - traveling, learning, and living life to... more

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October 2, 2022

Phil loved the plants and flowers of the Northwest. He came up to Portland numerous times to see his mom, me and Marty, other friends, and typically timed his visits around when the rhododendrons would be in peak bloom. I met Phil in 1987 when I... more

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October 1, 2022

Phil Kurjan was my colleague at Consilium. He was a gem, the only person I think of as a tech GURU. I last saw Phil in April 2018 in Hangen during a Consilium alumni lunch. He had lost his hair then but was in excellent spirits.
RIP, Phil.

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October 1, 2022

This picture is from January, 2018. From left to right, it's Noel, Philip, Mary (a friend of Philip's for thirty-some years) and me. He was about four months into his first-line chemo, which as you can see, made him lose his hair. The second-line... more

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October 1, 2022

I was acquainted with Philip through several outings (surrounding art exhibits and fine dim sum dining) with Janet, my friend and colleague. It was obvious that being brother and sister means being there for each other. I genuinely enjoyed their lively... more

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September 30, 2022

I'm Philip's "baby" sister Janet-five years younger. When Philip made the five year survival mark, I sent this email (slightly revised for this site) to him, friends of his and our cousin.

Five years ago, Philip had plans to come up Labor Day weekend,... moreI'm Philip's "baby" sister Janet-five years younger. When Philip made the five year survival mark, I sent this email (slightly revised for this site) to him, friends of his and our cousin.

Five years ago, Philip had plans to come up Labor Day weekend, stay with me, see the Yayoi Kusama exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum, and then go to Tacoma and visit friends from his Stanford days. I’d already seen the Kusama exhibit, but got a ticket for the same time slot. The day before coming up, he emailed me and said that he’d still be coming up and going to the exhibit, but he was skipping visiting the friends and instead going back down, so his visit was for just a little over a day. I think he may have said that he needed to go back for some medical tests.
When he got here, he told me that he’d had a scan (18 months earlier) to do with his bladder surgery that showed a small growth on his adrenal gland. He was told to get another scan after a period of time to check it again. This recent scan was centered on the adrenal gland and so would have a different range of view. The adrenal growth was stable, but there were growths on his pancreas and liver. Obviously, this was quite a shock (to me and I’m sure to him when he heard). When he got back home, he sent me the scan report. The adrenal was listed under incidental findings, so wasn’t important. The primary findings were the pancreatic and liver growth. So I realized that it almost certainly was metastatic pancreatic cancer, although I didn’t tell Philip this, since I’m not an expert, he should hear the info from a medical expert, and he’d get the biopsy info soon. So I had a few anxious days waiting for the biopsy results and of course they indicated Stage IV pancreatic cancer.
His prognosis was 6 months to 2 years. When I went to Zion and Antelope Canyon with him that October, I expected that to be our last trip, and possibly the last time I would see him healthy. Well, of course he fooled all of us (including his doctors I’m sure). A few months ago, I counted up our trips and visits (either him up here or me down there) and it was 20! And that’s with missing two years due to Covid.
So why Philip’s tumor responded better than usual to both chemos and why he dealt with both chemos better than most patients is a mystery. But there are always a few outliers, and luckily Philip was one of them. He made it five years and a little over two weeks. I had hoped that we would be celebrating his 75th and my 70th birthday this winter, but five years of trips and visits was way more than expected at the time of his diagnosis. less

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