Dr. Marcel Krauthammer, UCLA/VA Pulmonologist, Dies at 59
Dr. Marcel Krauthammer, pulmonologist and adjunct professor of medicine for 23 years at UCLA and the Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, died from brain cancer on Jan. 17. He was 59.
Serving as director of the medical intensive care unit at the VA Medical Center at Sepulveda for 17 years, Krauthammer treated the most critically ill patients.
A gifted teacher, he was awarded the Golden Apple Award three times from the UCLA-San Fernando Valley Medical Program house staff, an annual honor given to the most outstanding teacher from the training program. He also received several faculty awards, including Teacher of the Year in 1996 and the Clinical Faculty Teaching Award in 1980.
Krauthammer truly enjoyed his students and specialized in reading X-rays of the chest and lungs. His extensive chest X-ray collection recently was donated to the UCLA department of radiology and continues to be used for teaching purposes.
“Marcel was relentless in his pursuit of knowledge and in tracking down solutions to medical problems. He passed this motivation on to everyone he taught,” said Dr. Irwin Ziment, senate emeritus professor and former chief of medicine at Valleycare Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, who knew Krauthammer for 25 years.
Active in professional organizations, Krauthammer served as president of the Trudeau Society of Greater Los Angeles, which is associated with the American Lung Association and composed of academic and private pulmonologists.
Krauthammer was a member of the American College of Chest Physicians, American Thoracic Society and the Society of Critical Care Medicine. He also chaired pulmonary care symposiums and research conferences in Southern California.
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he completed his undergraduate work in Canada and received his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York in 1971. He started his medical career at UCLA and the VA as a staff physician in 1977 and retired in 2000.
He is survived by his wife, Joy; daughter, Aviva (Brett Freedman); mother, Thea; and brother, Dr. Charles Krauthammer.
Malvina Bloom died Jan. 25 at 95. She is survived by her son, Martin (Patty); daughter, Sharon Friedman; and granddaughter, Beth (Randal) Darner. Mount Sinai
David Chaloff died Nov. 25 at 73. He is survived by his wife, Emily; son, Michael; daughter, Caren (Randall) Slotkin; three grandchildren; and sister, Eleanore Goldfine. Chevra Kadisha
Henry Chesler died Jan. 25 at 86. He is survived by his wife, Eunice; daughter, Janet (Janes) Chesler-Johnson; five grandchildren; great-grandchild, Christopher; and sister-in-law, Sarah. Mount Sinai
Carmen Cohen died Jan. 26 at 93. She is survived by her husband, Isaac; daughter, Rena Robbins; and two grandchildren. Malinow and Silverman
Laura Rebecca Figoten died Jan. 26 at 90. She is survived by her daughter, Paula; sons, Sheldon and Myron; three grandchildren; and brothers, Murray (Annette) and Sidney Sack. Malinow and Silverman
Dorothy Ann Fisher died Nov. 15 at 91. She is survived by her son, Mark; and daughter, Arlene Christie. Chevra Kadisha
Kenneth James Fisher died Jan. 25 at 57. He is survived by his sisters, Virginia Johnson, Joan O’Connor and Helen (Stuart) Anderson; brothers, Duane, Jerry (Sandy) and Bruce (Bobbie); nieces; and nephews.
Norman Garrett died Jan. 25 at 81. He is survived by his wife, Adele; and daughters, Gayle (Spencer) Grendahl and Betsy (Leonard) Coop. Mount Sinai
ROY GINSBURG died Jan. 25 at 77. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; son, Harold (Natalie); daughter, Janet; and grandson, Matthew. Hillside
Ruth Green died Feb. 5 at 83. She is survived by nieces; and many friends. Chevra Kadisha
Gerda Grock died Jan. 22 at 82. She is survived by her sons, Simon and Kenneth; daughter, Mira; and five grandchildren. Groman
Fred Gross died Jan. 24 at 58. He is survived by his wife, Alicia; daughters, Melissa Haupt and Lindsay; and one grandchild. Groman
Gertrude Hyman died Jan. 24 at 97. She is survived by her son, Dr. Richard (Constance); grandsons, Aaron and David; and brother, Samuel (Irma) Spires. Mount Sinai
BERNY JACOBS died Jan. 23 at 77. He is survived by his son, Allen; and one grandchild. Hillside
Harry Karchmer died Jan. 22 at 96. He is survived by his grandsons, Matthew and Ed Ezor; and cousin, Max. Groman
Samuel Kessler died Jan. 23 at 86. He is survived by his son, Kenneth; daughter, Nancy Field; three grandchildren; brothers, Charles, Harold and Murrey; and sisters, Dorothy Willis, Zelda Lax, Evelyn Grossman and Hannah Malisoff. Groman
ALLEN KLATZKER died Jan. 24 at 89. He is survived by his wife, Sylvia; son, David; six grandchildren; and sisters Fern Saran and Mae Freidman. Hillside
Larry Kodish died Jan. 24 at 42. He is survived by his father, Sanford; and sister, Deborah Allsup. Groman
Sally Kodish died Jan. 23 at 69. She is survived by her husband, Sanford; daughter, Deborah Allsup; and one grandchild. Groman
Arthur Leigh died Dec. 9 at 79. He is survived by his friend, Bess Karp. Chevra Kadisha
Mary Caroline Lichtman died Jan. 25 at 83. She is survived by her children, Joseph (Bess), Nancy (Scott) and Gail (Ed); six grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.
LEON MAYER died Jan. 22 at 96. He is survived by his nieces, Inge Perzow and Sybil Golden; nephew, Murray Marks; brother-in-law, Arthur (Frances) Rosen; nieces; and nephews. Hillside
Paula Mirsky died Jan. 23. She is survived by her parents, Frances and Edward; and brothers, Jack (Yvette) and David. Mount Sinai
HERMAN OSTEN died Jan. 25 at 91. He is survived by his son, John; and two grandchildren. Hillside
Lillian Price died Jan. 15 at 88. She is survived by her son, Mitchell; and daughters, Arlene Siegel and Maureen. Malinow and Silverman
Erma Pearl died Jan. 16 at 105. She is survived by her son, Jerome. Malinow and Silverman
Ruth Lillian Rivlin died Jan. 25 at 93. She is survived by her daughter, Sylvia Sutton; sons, Ronnie (Carole) and David (Elaine); nine grandchildren; and three great grandchildren. Malinow and Silverman
William Rosenthal died Jan. 23 at 88. He is survived by his wife, Ruth; daughters, Sharon Messin and Helene Fish; and three grandchildren. Groman
David Sifri died Jan. 22. He is survived by his daughters, Leah (David) Karp, Ora (David) Amsellem and Matilda (Eli) Dahan; and ex-wife, Miriam Guz. Mount Sinai
NORTON JACK SMITH died Jan. 22 at 87. He is survived by his wife, Mollie; sons, Steven and Richard (Kathy); daughter, Sherri Broussard; and five grandchildren. Hillside
Helen Marion Solursh died Jan. 22 at 90. She is survived by her grandchildren, William and Lori Schwartz and Elizabeth; brother, Albert (Eileen) Schwartz; sister, Tillie Newman; and nephew, Dr. Mark (Eleanor) Richman. Mount Sinai
Yetta Jean Stern died Jan. 24 at 84. She is survived by her sons, Larry, Michael, Richard and Steven; daughter, Cheryl Goldberg; 14 grandchildren; and 10 great- grandchildren. Groman
Alice Topper died Jan. 24 at 84. She is survived by her daughters, Tobey (William Edwards) Dodge, Barbara (Dennis) Hughes and Merill (Arnold) Weinstein; and five grandchildren. Mount Sinai
Seymour Varnen died Jan. 25 at 76. He is survived by his wife, Marlene; sons, Michael and Eric; one grandchild; and brother, Norman. Groman
Sanford Waldon died Jan. 23 at 85. He is survived by his wife, Betty. Malinow and Silverman
FRANK WINKELMAN died Jan. 24 at 96. He is survived by his daughters Peshy (Chaim) Fisher, Beverly (Barry) Bialik, Linda (David) Goldstein; 10 grandchildren; 22 great-grandchildren. Sholom Chapels.
Harry Zahler died Jan. 24 at 85. He is survived by his son, Ira; daughter, Pamela Zahler-Marino and grandchild, Elana Marino.
HELEN ZISNER died Jan. 25 at 85. She is survived by her sons, Martin (Beverly) and Ben (Cindee); five grandchildren; and sister, Betty Daniel. Hillside
