Glaser Weil attorney and senior partner Roger Howard has died at the age of 81.
The esteemed corporate, real estate and mergers and acquisitions lawyer passed away on August 29 after a battle with cancer. A memorial for Howard was held on September 1st and his family is sitting shiva.
A well-known raconteur, Howard is survived by his wife Linda, his children, Missy and Andy and their spouses, Glen and Jennifer, along with grandchildren, Scott, Brett, Matt, Josh, Ryan, and Brooke.
In lieu of flowers, the Howard family has asked that donations in Roger’s memory be made to Cedars-Sinai here. A recipient of the Cedars-Sinai Hospital Tower Cancer Research Foundation’s Humanitarian Award, Howard sat on the Board of Governors of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, among other institutions.
In the sometimes hotly contested and Byzantine world of Hollywood real estate, Howard’s clients over his 35-years at Glaser Weil included various studios, producers, and filmmakers and the likes of L.A. County. Most recently, he represented Emmy winners Papazian-Hirsch Studios, LLC, the Nederlander Organization, Blackstone Consulting, Inc., Wyatt Technology, SKB Cases, and publicist Michael S. Sitrick.
However, Howard’s shepherding of a Jason Reitman-led coalition of directors’ 2024 acquisition of the historic almost 100-year-old Westwood Village Theatre may prove to be one of his most lasting legal legacies. Howard and his Glaser Weil team aided the Village Directors Circle in their quest to bring the shuttered and beloved UCLA adjacent movie palace back to life in collaboration with American Cinematheque
The Village Directors Circle consists of Reitman, Steven Spielberg, Judd Apatow, Guillermo del Toro, Christopher McQuarrie, Damien Chazelle, Chris Columbus, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Hannah Fidell, Alejandro González Iñárritu, James Gunn, Sian Heder, Rian Johnson, Gil Kenan, Karyn Kusama, Justin Lin, Phil Lord, David Lowery, Chris Miller, Todd Phillips, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Jay Roach, Seth Rogen, Emma Seligman, Emma Thomas, Denis Villeneuve, Lulu Wang, Chloé Zhao and Christopher Nolan
Exemplified by its 170-foot white Spanish Revival/Art Deco tower, and already showing films like Nolan’s The Odyssey, the 1000+ seater is set to undergo a multi-million dollar 12-month renovation starting later this year.
Born on December 5, 1944 in Los Angeles, Howard received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, L.A., where he was recognized as the Outstanding Graduating Senior by the home of the Bruins. Howard stayed at the university and received his law degree from the UCLA School of Law.
Today, GW founders Patricia Glaser and Peter Weil offered words of loss and praise about their colleague.
“Roger was one of those rare people who made an immediate and lasting impression on everyone he met,” Glaser said of Howard.
“He was brilliant, thoughtful, unfailingly kind and deeply loyal to the people he cared about,” the litigator continued. “Over the years, I came to admire not only his extraordinary gifts as a lawyer, but the warmth, humility and generosity that defined him as a person. And Roger made practicing law fun. There was no favor you could ask of him that was too big. I will miss him dearly.”
Managing Partner Weil added: “There are some people whose presence makes an organization better simply because they are part of it. Roger was one of those people. Roger embodied the very best of our profession. He built an extraordinary career marked by excellence, sound judgment and unwavering dedication to his clients, but those achievements were surpassed only by his character. He was generous with his time, devoted to his family and friends and deeply respected by everyone who had the privilege of working alongside him. Roger brought out the best in those around him and his friendship was a gift. Roger leaves behind a lasting legacy at Glaser Weil and we are grateful for the many years we shared with him.”
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