SALEM — When he isn't in a classroom in Salem, Jeff Pearlman is at sea.
Pearlman, an adjunct professor of regional geography at Salem State College, is a "destination lecturer." During winter, spring and summer breaks from college, he lectures aboard cruise ships on topics such as pirates and the Russian mystic Rasputin.
"I guess people don't expect to get or learn anything when they go to a (cruise) lecture," Pearlman said, "so many people seem so grateful. One woman asked me for an autograph."
In the last 31/2 years, Pearlman has lectured on a dozen voyages, from the Caribbean to the Baltic Sea and through the Panama Canal — which was "quite a trip." He spends months preparing his cruise ship lectures and even wears a pirate costume — made by Linda Burtt of the Salem State theater department — for his pirate lectures.
"My biggest joy is talking to people," said Pearlman, 59. "I have met people from all over the world."
It all began in 2003, when Pearlman and his wife, Marlene, were on a cruise vacation in the Mediterranean and heard a retired professor lecture on Rome.
"He was terrible, monotone, and he even got the date of Caesar's assassination wrong," Pearlman recalled. "I thought, 'I can do this, and I could do it well.'"
So he called an agent in Florida who coordinates lecturers for the major cruise lines, and he got on board. Pearlman isn't paid to lecture, but he gets a discounted ticket. He and his wife have been able to travel extensively as a result — from Sweden and Estonia to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.
"Since then, I've been everywhere but the Far East," said Pearlman, who wore a necktie with skull and crossbones logos during a recent interview at his office at Salem State.
Vikings and politics
His lecture topics have included U.S. and Caribbean relations in the 20th century, Vikings, and climate change and wildlife in Alaska. He also brings information and photos back to Salem State.
"I make the photos into slides and give them to other professors," he said. "I'm proud to represent Salem State College (on the ships), so I give out my card, and I'm always telling people about the good work we do."
He generally gives four lectures per voyage — sometimes as many as two a day — each 45 minutes long.
"In 45 minutes, you can only scratch the surface," he said, "but they are very strict about the time limit."
He presents overhead slides and handouts and distributes trinkets during lectures. He even administers a quiz to the audience at the end.
"It's quite a lot of work," Pearlman said. "It takes a good three months to research and put it all together. I was preparing my lectures for the Baltic for one whole year."
He said a highlight of the Baltic cruise last August was a trip to the ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Pat Whynott, a secretary in the geography and music departments at Salem State, went on a cruise to Bermuda last June aboard the Norwegian Majesty and heard Pearlman lecture.
"We just enjoyed Jeff's lectures — we went to all three," said Whynott, of Gloucester. "I learned a lot about the area."
Pearlman is writing a book on one of his cruise lecture topics — modern piracy and terrorism — which he hopes to publish in a few years.
His most recent trip included the Yucatan Peninsula and visits to Mayan ruins. He is gearing up for two cruises this summer, one up the East Coast to Canada and Nova Scotia and one to Bermuda.
"I'll talk about the Shakespeare play 'The Tempest,' which is set in the Bermuda Triangle," he said.
Jeff and Marlene Pearlman live in a condominium in Salem off Loring Avenue. Pearlman also teaches part time at Bunker Hill Community College, and he supervises student teachers for Boston University each spring semester. Pearlman is retired from teaching after 36 years in the Revere public schools.
