Abstract
Deborah J. Greenberg begins her interview by sharing some family background information including her childhood in Chicago, her mother’s position as a therapist, and the world travels that were funded by her father’s position as a professor at the University of Illinois.
Greenberg describes her first impressions of the Brown University campus and living on campus. She identifies her fondest memories as graduating magna cum laude, and being able to change her major from psychology to semiotics during her junior year, and attributes both to the flexible curriculum and grading system. She briefly mentions social life on campus.
Greenberg goes on to remember her first post-graduation internship in news casting with a local NBC affiliate while waitressing at a disco. She returns to memories of her time at Brown, recalling diversity in the student population and her participation in Brown Community Outreach, then moved on to more post-graduation memories. Greenberg describes her attempt at acting in New York City, a public relations job at the Guggenheim Museum, and her position as a stockbroker on Wall Street, and her path to ultimately doing voiceovers. She explains her desire to have a career and children and details some of her volunteer work.
Greenberg concludes the interview by discussing how her education at Brown influenced her life, and commenting on Brown’s growing popularity.
Recorded on June 9, 2014 in New York, NY
Interviewed by Phyllis Santry
Suggested Chicago style citation: Greenberg, Deborah J. Interview. By Phyllis Santry. Pembroke Center Oral History Project, Brown University. June 9, 2014.
Biography
The daughter of a Fulbright Professor, Deborah J. Greenberg was born in Chicago, began traveling the world from a young age, and lived in Mexico and Italy. She attended the University of Chicago for one year and then transferred to Brown University where she was involved in theatre and dance, and majored in semiotics. After graduating in 1979, Greenberg lived in Providence for a year before moving to New York to pursue acting. While in New York she had a small part in “All My Children,” then went on to work in the public affairs department at the Guggenheim Museum. Soon thereafter, Greenberg worked on Wall Street and eventually left to raise her three children. At the time of this interview, Greenberg had been doing voiceover work for twelve years.