Bernard D. Gold

Bernard D. Gold passed away peacefully, at the age of 93, on November 3, 2024 at Trezevant Terrace in Memphis, Tennessee. "Bernie," as he was affectionately known to all-including his granddaughter-was born on December 12, 1930. The older son of Abraham Gold and Rose Wendum Gold, Bernie grew up in the Bronx with his brother Harvey, surrounded by extended family and friends. Despite spending the second half of his life far from the streets of New York City, Bernie never lost his Bronx accent, his love for the Yankees, or his fondness for corned beef on rye.

Bernie's passion for learning and his singular communication skills were apparent from early on. He recalled to his children debates he had with teachers about history and politics in junior high school. Bernie attended Stuyvesant High School where he excelled in academics, and among many other activities, ran on the track team. He loved sharing memories of running the 440 at Madison Square Garden.

In 1948, Bernie entered Cornell University and enrolled in its newly-founded School of Industrial Labor Relations, setting him on a course to a meaningful and illustrious career. At college, Bernie also knew how to have fun. He often regaled his children with entertaining tales of his days as an Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity brother.

In 1952, Bernie met the love of his life, Brooklynite Madeline Edelstein. Madeline was Bernie's boss the summer he worked at the NY Bureau of Labor Statistics before entering Harvard Law School. They married in August 1953. For more than seventy years, the couple were each other's closest friends and toughest critics.

Bernie thrived at law school, due in large part to Madeline's unwavering support. He was on the Law Review, graduated magna cum laude and managed to win often at a weekly poker game. Bernie's legal career began at Proskauer Rose New York where he practiced from 1955 to 1961, except for his military duty at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. During this time, Bernie and Madeline joyfully welcomed their son, Douglas and daughter, Pamela. Bernie left Proskauer to join NBC New York's labor department. In the following years, as Bernie gained a reputation as a consummate entertainment labor lawyer, the family bought their first home in New Rochelle in anticipation of the birth of their third child, daughter Glennis.

In 1975 Bernie accepted the position as head of NBC's West Coast Law Department, precipitating the family's move to Los Angeles and Bernie's continued role on the forefront of US entertainment labor law. In 1979, Bernie returned to Proskauer, invited to open its Los Angeles branch. The office flourished. In addition to his own case work, Bernie had a reputation as a mentor par excellence. Bernie's brilliant analytical skills coupled with his humor and low-key approach to negotiations and litigation, garnered tremendous respect from both management and union leaders alike. In Bernie's last years at Proskauer, he taught at UCLA Law School with the same passion with which he practiced. Bernie retired in 2001.

While Bernie's legal work was critical to his essence, he found his greatest joy in his family, be it attending professional sporting events with Doug, playing tennis with Pam, taking walks with Glennis, kvelling over Natalie, beating us all in Scrabble, and of course, spending time doing just about anything with Madeline.

Bernie leaves behind daughter Pamela Gold of Memphis, Tennessee, (Stephen Smith), Glennis Gold of Norwich, Vermont, (Jeffrey Ruoff), granddaughter, Natalie Gold of Washington D.C., and brother, Harvey Gold of Saratoga, California (Ellen). He was predeceased by his beloved wife Madeline Edelstein Gold (2023) and their son Douglas Gold (2011).

For those who would like to donate in Bernie's memory, kindly consider the UCLA Labor Center https://giving.ucla.edu/Campaign/Donate.aspx?SiteNum=70&amount=50. The family will hold a private memorial service in the spring.