RALPH EHRENPREIS

EHRENPREIS--Ralph. June 9, 1942 - October 18, 2014 Ralph Ehrenpreis wrote a first draft of his obituary over the years, but often quipped that he wanted it to be published many years in the future, if at all. Ralph was born in Memphis, Tennessee to Irv and Bess Ehrenpreis and shortly thereafter moved to Oak Park, MI, a suburb of Detroit, where he grew up with his only sister, Tobi. When he was ten, his father passed away and there began his everlasting quest to avoid his own death. He went to University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he graduated in 1963. Thereafter, he moved to California to marry Sandra Jackson and to attend Stanford Law School, where he received his Juris Doctor in 1967. After moving to Los Angeles to work for a large law firm, he quickly found his niche by establishing an immigration law practice more than 40 years ago, which continues to be one of the most successful such firms in the country. His passion for his work was only surpassed by his love of jazz, theater, film, exercise, literature, and his family. Over the years he amassed a remarkable and vast collection of jazz recordings. He played his music loud, scrutinizing every word of the liner notes, had an encyclopedic knowledge of the history of the music and artists, and was a scholar of all things jazz. He was a voracious reader with his home filled with shelves of books from decades of interests. Although he will be remembered for his tireless commitment to his law practice, most will remember a man with an unsurpassed sense of humor, wry and quick wit, and sarcasm. As much as he loved making others laugh, he loved making himself laugh even more. Beneath his irreverence was a man who loved his friends, made strangers smile, and made time every day of his life to be there for his closest family. So many people loved and admired his insatiable curiosity, depth of interests, sheer intellect, and charisma and warmth. He was deeply committed to his wife of eighteen years, Jennifer Kaufman, his three children, Ira, Jeff, and Jason, his daughters-in-law, Ellen and Brooke, his step-children Darian and Ben, and his three grandchildren, Lindsay, Ashley, and Zachary. In the ultimate irony, his death was tragic like that of his father and so many of the jazz figures who were his heroes. Services were held at Hillside Memorial Park in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 at 10am. To view the service, go to: http://RalphEhrenpeis53696. HillsideMemorialParkSympathyNet.ezwebcast.com/ login/user/user900948/password/aba1bf836e3b4b5464a21864ef9928c5 As Ralph would have wanted to have had the last laugh: in lieu of flowers or donations, please send gifts. Cash also accepted. Please send notes of remembrances, stories, and memories about Ralph to ralph@ehrenpreis.com