Legendary Throat Surgeon Dead at 80

William Wayne Montgomery, a retired Harvard Medical School (HMS) professor who operated on the throat and vocal chords of famous actors, athletes and dignitaries using his own ground-breaking techniques, died of bladder cancer at his home in Brookline, Mass. on Nov. 7. He was 80.

During his nearly 50 year career at HMS, Montgomery wrote and updated Surgery of the Upper Respiratory System, which many consider to be the definitive work on diseases of the nose, ears and throat. He was Merriam professor of Otology and Laryngology from 1993 until he retired in May of 2002.

Montgomery also worked at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary for almost a half-century, operating on such patients as the actor Jack Klugman, who played Oscar in “The Odd Couple” TV show and who suffered from vocal chord paralysis. Montgomery developed and inserted a special implant into Klugman’s throat to keep one of the damaged chords from opening, restoring Klugman’s voice.

However, Montgomery did not simply cater to the rich and famous. He also maintained a website for his patients on which he answered questions including, “What is the best thing for a sore-throat?” (His prescription: gargle a teaspoon of salt in warm water, if the throat isn’t red; otherwise, consult a doctor).

Aside from the throat, Montgomery also made significant advancements in several other subdivisions of otolaryngology, including the ears, head and neck.

“In the area of the ear, he made some very lasting contributions to the management of acoustic neuromas, which are common benign tumors which affect the inner ear,” said HMS Lecompte Professor of Otology and Laryngology Joseph B. Nadol, Jr. “What’s incredible is that he did that again and again in other subspecialities. Any of us would be proud to have made those contributions in one area—it’s a tribute to his ingenuity and devotion to his patients.”

Nadol said Montgomery—known affectionately as Monty—was highly esteemed by his colleagues.

“He was adored, almost deified. He was the go-to person for clinical, professional and personal problems,” Nadol said. “It was like having a well in a desert.”

A champion ski-jumper, Montgomery also enjoyed gardening, hiking and wood carving, a hobby he took up at age 8. He carved portraits of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, among others.

Born on Aug. 20, 1923 in Proctor, Vt., Montgomery attended Middlebury College and the University of Vermont Medical School, Burlington. After finishing his internship in surgery, Montgomery joined the Navy and served as a battalion surgeon in the Korean War. He was awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star with Valor for his service.

In 1995, Montgomery published The Mustache That Walks Like a Man, his memoirs of the period.

After the war, Montgomery completed his residency at Harvard and joined the faculty at HMS in 1955.

“I will miss his friendship, wry wit and his sage and remarkably straight-forward advice,” Nadol said. “He had seen it all in the course of his professional career, and he knew what was the right thing to do intellectually.”

Montgomery is survived by his wife, Diane; five sons, Lynn, Scott, Stuart, Leslie and Robert; his sister, Jane Montgomery; and seven grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday at noon in Memorial Church. Relatives and friends are invited to attend.