LAWRENCE LAURENT

1925 - 2020

LAURENT Lawrence Bell Laurent Lawrence Bell Laurent, 95, died August 1, 2020 at his residence at Goodwin House Alexandria, VA. Born March 9, 1925, he is survived by three children, Arthur Laurent of Leesburg, VA; Margaret Laurent Gordy (Joseph Gordy) of St Augustine FL; and Elizabeth Laurent (Lawrence Dame) of Merion Station PA. He is also survived by four grandchildren Megan Stewart (Alex Stewart) of Moseley, VA; John Gordy, USN; Edward Dame and Rebecca Dame of Merion Station; and two great-granddaughters. Mr. Laurent was predeceased by his beloved wife of 56 years, Margaret Goodwillie Laurent (2006), and eldest son, Richard Sandford Laurent (2012). A former journalist and communications executive, Laurent worked at The Washington Post from 1951 to 1982. Hired as a sports reporter, he was appointed by Post publisher Phil Graham, as the paper's first TV critic in 1953. After leaving the Post, Laurent was a VP for the Association of Independent Television Stations. He taught at American University and George Washington University, was elected to the Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame (1984), received the Distinguished Teacher Award from American University (1978), and the President's Medal from George Washington University (1999). Among numerous publications, Laurent edited Newton N. Minow's Equal Time: The Private Broadcaster and The Public Interest (1964). For several decades, he was on the judging panel for the Humanitas Prize, described by Barbara Walters as television's equivalent to the Nobel Prize for literature. His professional papers are available for research at George Washington University's Gelman Library. A graduate of Ouachita Parish High School in Monroe, Laurent served as a Navy radioman in the South Pacific during World War II. After the war, he attended the University of Virginia where he worked on university and local newspapers. Laurent and his family lived for 53 years in a historic brick home in Alexandria where they welcomed generations of relatives, neighbors, friends, and groups of young people ranging from the T. C. Williams High School Band to Laurent's students from AU and GWU. A private interment will be at Spring Hill Cemetery in Lynchburg, VA. A memorial service at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 228 South Pitt Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 will be scheduled when conditions allow. The family asks that memorial contributions be made to St. Paul's Lazarus Ministry (T. C. Student Support) at the church's address above. For more details of his life, to check for service updates, and leave your memories and photos, go to adventfuneral.comFor more details of his life, to check for service updates, and leave your memories and photos, go to adventfuneral.com