Alyce Faye Eichelberger Cleese (''née'' McBride; born October 28, 1944) is an American

psychotherapist Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

, author and

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...

host. She was married to golfer Dave Eichelberger and later to actor-comedian

John Cleese John Marwood Cleese ( ; born 27 October 1939) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Emerging from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and ...

Education

Alyce Faye McBride received her

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

in 1966. While at Oklahoma State, she served as "queen" of

Willard Hall Willard Hall (December 24, 1780 – May 10, 1875), was a Delaware attorney and politician from Wilmington in New Castle County. He was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party, who served in the Delaware Senate, as a United States represent ...

, before it was transformed from a women's

dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...

into its current role as the site of the University's College of Education. She continued her studies at

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

, earning

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

s in Educational Psychology and in Vocational and

Educational Counseling A school counselor is a professional who works in primary (elementary and middle) schools or secondary schools to provide academic, career, college access/affordability/admission, and social-emotional competencies to all students through a school ...

. The future Eichelberger Cleese then moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where she studied the

Psychoanalysis PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might b ...

children A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

under Anna Freud, working with disturbed children from disadvantaged backgrounds at The Hampstead Clinic (established by Freud in 1952), and receiving a postgraduate qualification, the Diploma in the Maladjusted Child, from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

Institute of Education.

Career

Eichelberger worked as a

for more than three decades. She is the co-author (with

Brian Bates Brian Bates may refer to: * Brian Bates (psychologist) (born 1944), British professor of psychology and writer * Brian Bates (soccer) Brian Bates (born August 16, 1972 in Woodbridge, Virginia) is a retired American soccer defender who spent fou ...

) of ''How to Manage Your Mother: Understanding the Most Difficult, Complicated, and Fascinating Relationship in Your Life'' and she sits on the Board of Trustees of the

Esalen Institute The Esalen Institute, commonly called Esalen, is a non-profit American retreat center and intentional community in Big Sur, California, which focuses on humanistic alternative education. The institute played a key role in the Human Potential ...

. Alyce Faye Cleese is on the American Board of National Theatre for London and the Board of Shakespeare Society for New York. She is a visiting senior tutor for Massachusetts General Hospital.

Honors

She was honored by

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

for her work in psychotherapy, and was inducted into the

Oklahoma State University College of Education The Oklahoma State University College of Education (COE) serves more than 3000 students within 29 graduate and undergraduate programs at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma as well as Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-larg ...

Hall of Fame in 2007.

Marriage to John Cleese and divorce

After divorcing Dave Eichelberger (with whom she had two sons), she met actor

in 1990 and they married in 1992. They divorced in 2008, though details of the divorce settlement only became public knowledge in August 2009. Faye Cleese was represented by

Fiona Shackleton Fiona Sara Shackleton, Baroness Shackleton of Belgravia, (''née'' Charkham; born 26 May 1956) is an English solicitor and Conservative politician, who has represented members of the British royal family and celebrities, including Sir Paul McC ...

, divorce lawyer for

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

References

External links

Eichelberger
on UCTV as part of the Henry A. Schimberg Endowment in Ethics & Enterprise Lecture Series. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cleese, Alyce 1944 births 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American psychologists 21st-century American women scientists 21st-century American women writers 21st-century American psychologists Alumni of the UCL Institute of Education American expatriates in England American psychology writers American psychotherapists American talk radio hosts Living people Oklahoma State University alumni People from Frederick, Oklahoma Radio personalities from Oklahoma