Prominent entertainment attorney Edward Blau died at his Los Angeles home on Jan. 31, surrounded by his family. He was 94.
Blau was born in the Bronx, N.Y., on Aug. 3, 1922. His parents emigrated from Hungary in the early 1900s and ran a successful neighborhood bakery.
His clients included many luminaries from the world of entertainment, including writer Henry Miller; TV personality, musician, writer and actor Steve Allen; actors Fred Astaire, Rock Hudson, Dennis Hopper and Jerry Mathers; comedians/actors Jerry Lewis and Rowan & Martin; singers Bobby Darin and Dionne Warwick; magicians Siegfried & Roy; the Magic Castle; and Ralph Edwards Productions. He represented renowned singer Johnny Mathis for more than 50 years.
He received an honorary award from the Caucus for Producers, Writers and Directors for his dedication to the organization. He mentored junior attorneys, many of whom became successful entertainment figures.
From an early age, Blau excelled in school, graduating from City College of New York with a degree in business administration. During World War II, he enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps (forerunner of the U.S. Air Force), achieving the rank of first lieutenant. After serving in the military, he graduated from Harvard Law School in 1951. His career began with the MCA talent agency in New York, where he worked closely with legendary talent agent and studio executive Lew Wasserman. He then drove across the country to Los Angeles, where he became a prominent entertainment attorney and a partner at a prestigious law firm before eventually branching out on his own.
He loved to regale friends with stories and jokes, and approached every challenge as an adventure, his family said. He enjoyed his daily newspaper, watching movies at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, playing tennis and playing with his grandchildren, his family added.
Blau is survived by his wife, Rita; children Gary, Roni and Sharon (Scott); granddaughters Ariella and Elana; sister Rita Goldstein; and nephew and nieces.
