Lawrence N. Field

1930 - 2020

October 21, 1930 - January 28, 2020 It is with great sadness that we announce the passing on Tuesday, January 28, 2020, of Lawrence Neil Field at his home in Beverly Hills. An innovative real estate entrepreneur and an involved philanthropist, Larry was 89. Born in The Bronx, New York, on October 21, 1930, Larry was the only child of Hungarian immigrants, the late Eugene and Rose Field. He worked in his parents' small Tremont Ave. grocery store through high school, then went to the Downtown Campus of the City College of New York (CCNY), which later became Baruch College. In 1952, Larry enlisted in the US Army and was trained as a Ranger. He was assigned to work as an information officer for the base commander at Fort Slocum, where he taught political science and managed and coached the base sports teams. Following his Army service, and after helping to launch the Dove soap brand for Lever Brothers, he went into the real estate business while earning his law degree at night from New York Law School on the G.I. Bill. On a weekend trip to Fire Island in the summer of 1959, he met his beloved Eris (Perll). Within months they married, and were together for nearly half a century until her passing in 2009. In 1965 they moved to Los Angeles to be closer to Eris's large, close-knit family. There Larry rapidly expanded his real estate activities, first managing holdings of the Tisch and Helmsley firms, then syndicating dozens of commercial properties himself. Leading the Richlar Partnership, he constructed some 800 homes in Southern California. He then formed NSB Associates, naming it for his inevitable response when asked how things were going: "Not So Bad!" He even used his favorite catchphrase in the title of his 2019 autobiography, "Not So Bad – From The Bronx to Beverly Hills." NSB went on to become one of the region's most successful developers and managers of commercial and industrial real estate. Larry was widely credited with pioneering the concept of repurposing industrial properties into creative office space that attracted many of the area's digital media, technology and entertainment companies. Larry had boundless energy and optimism, and was always direct and honest. He believed that anyone could be successful in business and in life. He loved the real estate business and relished his role as a mentor and friend to many young people starting out, and he was always generous with his time and advice. Deeply involved in philanthropy, Larry and Eris were major supporters and board members of many educational, arts and health care organizations in Los Angeles, New York, and Israel. They founded the Field Center for Entrepreneurship at Baruch College in 1998. In 2015, the second Field Center for Entrepreneurship was established in Ariel, Israel. Additionally, they funded the Eris M. Field Chair in Diabetes Research at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the Lawrence N. Field West Gate of the Hollywood Bowl, the Eris M. Field Plaza at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and the Lawrence N. and Eris Field Building and the Clivner=Field Plaza at Baruch College. They were also major supporters of the Music Center, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, the Hammer Museum, the Young Musicians Foundation, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and their family synagogue, Stephen Wise Temple in Los Angeles. Larry is survived by his two daughters, Lisa Field and Robyn Field, his son-in-law, Anthony O'Carroll, and his two granddaughters, Ibby O'Carroll and Kate O'Carroll. He is also survived by his companion of 10 years, Rivka Seiden. Services will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, January 31, 2020, at Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery, 5950 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90068. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to either The Field Center for Entrepreneurship at Baruch College or to The Eris M. Field Endowed Chair in Diabetes Research at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.