40 | JANUARY 2 • 2020

Soul
of blessed memory

celebrate with pride, things
of her own doing.
”
Willis never studied music.
“I’
m untrained,
” she said in
the 2018 JN cover story. “The
only music lessons I had was
that on Saturdays I’
d have
my parents drop me off at
the Motown house [on West
Grand Boulevard]. I’
d sit on
the grass and listen to what
they were doing inside. If I
didn’
t grow up in Detroit, I
probably wouldn’
t be a song-
writer.”
In 2018, she was inducted
into the Songwriters Hall
of Fame. But songwriting
was far from her only pas-
sion, according to a New
York Times story. She was
well known as a collector of
kitsch, and her pink 1937 Los
Angeles home housed her
collection of candy-colored
ephemera, cataloged online
at her Museum of Kitsch.
Willis herself was a work
of art, easily recognized
because of her signature hair-
cut — long on one side and
much shorter on the other —
and her colorful outfits.
Her passions also included
making art (the walls of her
home are lined with works
by Bubbles the Artist, her
alter ego), the internet (in
the ’
90s she developed her
own social network of sorts,
called Willisville) and host-
ing wild parties that drew a
fascinating cross section of
Hollywood, the story said.
“I met Allee in the early
1980s through another fel-
low Detroiter, Jim Budman,
”
said Southfield native Stan
Zimmerman, a TV producer
in L.A. “He got me invited to
one of Allee’
s famous parties.
Allee was always the life of

any party, and the best party
hostess in Hollywood. Her
gatherings were legendary,
from her famous all-girl
(except me filming) pajama
parties to her backyard party
supporting Detroit Mosaic
Theatre.
“One of my favorite mem-
ories of her, was our trip
together back to Detroit. She
took me to her old house
that she had grown up in.
She loved everything about
Detroit, she was the city’
s
biggest fan!
“The light in my life will
certainly be dimmer without
Allee in it,” Zimmerman said.
“But, lucky for all of us, her
music and, more importantly,
her spirit will live on forever.”
While Willis continued
writing songs and music,
in recent years she focused
on performing one-wom-
an shows and curating her
museum-home, known as
Willis Wonderland. But she
never lost her curiosity and
ambition to do as much as
possible, the Times story said.
“I want to do more things
that involve everything I do:
the music, the art, the tech-
nology, the social aspect of
things,” she told the Times
last year. “Life is too short,
and I am too tired!”
Willis is survived by
Prudence Fenton, her “part-
ner and soulmate;” brother,
Kent Willis; sister, Marlen
Frost; and niece, Mandy
Becker.

JN Contributing Writers Lynne
Konstantin, Julie Yolles, Adam
Finkel and Esther Allweiss Ingber
added to this story. To read more,
go to thejewishnews.com and
search for Allee Willis.

ALLEE WILLIS continued from page 39

SARAH DEITCH,
96, of West
Bloomfield, died
Dec. 18, 2019.
She is survived by
her sons and daugh-
ters-in-law, Howard Deitch and
Melissa Soble, and Dr. Jeffrey and
Marsha Deitch; daughter and
son-in-law, Renee and Ronnie
Forman; grandchildren, Charles
Barr, Deanna Forman, Jayme
Forman, Erin and Ray Fleshman,
Kati Eisenberg, Dorin Deitch,
Drake Deitch and his fiancee,
Zoe Sims, and Dylan Deitch;
great-grandson, Ben Fleshman.
Mrs. Deitch was the beloved
wife of the late Charles Deitch;
the cherished mother of the late
David Deitch.
Interment was at Machpelah
Cemetery. Contributions may be
made to Northwest Child Rescue
Women, 6600 W
. Maple, West
Bloomfield, MI 48322; Michigan
Jewish Sports Foundation, 2000
Oakley Park Road, #104, Walled
Lake, MI 48390, michiganjew-
ishsports.org; Jewish Hospice
& Chaplaincy Network, 6555
W
. Maple, West Bloomfield,
MI 48322, jewishhospice.org;
or to a charity of one’
s choice.
Arrangements by Ira Kaufman
Chapel.

STEWART LEVIN,
84, of Pleasant Ridge,
died Dec. 16, 2019,
peacefully at home in
the arms of his
beshert, following
numerous health issues culminat-
ing with an untreatable infection.
He was born in Jackson to
Murray and Sarah Levin.
Mr. Levin loved his home in
Pleasant Ridge and its village
of friends and neighbors. A
people-person, he was the con-
summate salesman, initially of
women’
s clothing then in the
residential building industry. He
loved Jewish learning.
His wife, Suzanne, was extraor-
dinarily aided in caring for
Stewart during his final days by

Hospice of Michigan and the
Jewish Hospice and Chaplaincy
Network.
He is survived by his “precious”
wife of 20 years, Suzanne Levin;
his children, Dawn Levin of
Denver, Bradley (Jocelyn Baldwin)
Levin of West Bloomfield and
Craig Levin of Clawson; Suzanne’
s
children, Jordan Lowy, Adam
Lowy and Shira Rutman, all of
San Franscisco, Todd and Taal
Hasak-Lowy of Evanston, Ill.; his
“son from another mister,
” Keith
Buchanan of Pleasant Ridge. He
was the adoring proud Saba of
Ariel Hasak-Lowy, Noam Hasak-
Lowy, Irit Rutman-Lowy and
Micah Rutman-Lowy. He is also
survived by his sister, Jacqueline
Carter; niece, Stephanie Bachelor;
and nephew, Gregory Carter;
Suzanne’
s extended family and
a world of study partners and
friends.
Contributions may be made
to the Florence Melton School of
Adult Jewish Learning, 85 Revere
Drive, Suite J, Northbrook,
IL 60062, meltonschool.org;
or Detroit Friends of Adult
Jewish Learning, (JLearn and
Melton), 6735 Telegraph Road,
Suite 105, Bloomfield Hills, MI
48301. Arrangements by Ira
Kaufman Chapel.

DIEGO MESA, 78,
of West Bloomfield,
died Dec. 17, 2019.
He is survived by
his wife of 60 years,
Doris Mesa; sons
and daughters-in-law, Manuel
and Rachel Mesa, and Daniel and
Melissa Mesa; grandchildren,
Noah, Jacob, Benjamin, Elan and
Jordana Mesa; sister, Carmen
Fredes.
Mr. Mesa was the dear brother-
in-law of the late Raul Fredes.
Interment was at Beth El
Memorial Park. Contributions
may be made to Temple Beth
El, 7400 Telegraph, Bloomfield
Hills, MI 48301, tbeonline.org.
Arrangements by Ira Kaufman
Chapel.