John E. Bordley was born in Baltimore, Maryland, at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1902. Born into an old Baltimore family with strong ties to the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Hospital, he also devoted his life to Johns Hopkins. His brothers trained in surgery at Hopkins and his father was a member of the Johns Hopkins Department of Ophthalmology.

Dr Bordley graduated from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 1925 and served his internship at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore. He served in World War II with honor as a member of the Johns Hopkins 118th General Hospital Division in Austra lia, New Guinea, and the Philippines. He was awarded three battle stars for his service in the Pacific theater.

In 1952 he was appointed Director of the Department of Otolaryngology and Otolaryngologist in Charge at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was designated the Andelot Professor of Otolaryngology and served as Chair for 35 years. His contributions to the literature, to research, and to the development of otolaryngology and speech research at the National Institutes of Health led not only to the development and recognition of the strong Johns Hopkins residency program, but also to the support and development of other divisions and departments of otolaryngology across the country.

Dr Bordley worked with William G. Hardy, PhD, of the Johns Hopkins Hearing and Speech Clinic to develop an interdisciplinary approach to the treatment of hearing and speech problems. He was an innovative investigator and applied the scientific method to investigation and treatment of disorders of hearing and communication. His anatomical and epidemiological work correlated materials on rubella and hearing loss.

Dr Bordley received many honors nationally and internationally. He received the Award of Merit for his distinguished contributions to otology from the American Otological Society, and a Gold Medal Award from the International Federation of Otolaryngology. He was Executive Director of the American Council of Otolaryngology from 1968 to 1972. He helped guide and direct its amalgamation with the American Academy of Otolaryngology. He served as President of the American Otological Society, the Society for University Otolaryngologists, the American Otological, Rhinological and Laryngological Society, and numerous other organizations.

He was honorary President of the VII World Congress of Otolaryngology in 1985. He has served visiting professorships in Guy's Hospital in London, Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, South Africa, and India, as well as many others in the United States. Many of his students, residents, and fellows have become the teachers of our specialty. In 1990 his former students, along with his colleagues, honored him further by establishing the John E. Bordley Chair in Otolaryngology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital School of Medicine. Dr Bordley is survived by his wife, helpmate, companion, and best friend, Ellen Fisher Bordley; his daughters, Ellen Bruce Gibbs and Anne Moss; three grandchildren; and three great grandchildren.