Glaser Weil attorney and senior partner Roger Howard, the esteemed Hollywood corporate, real estate and mergers and acquisitions lawyer, died August 29 after a battle with cancer. He was 81.
Howard’s clients over his 35 years at Glaser Weil included various studios, producers and filmmakers as well as Los Angeles County. Most recently, he represented Emmy winners Papazian-Hirsch Studios, the Nederlander Organization, Blackstone Consulting, Wyatt Technology, SKB Cases and publicist Michael S. Sitrick.
However, his shepherding of a Jason Reitman-led coalition of directors’ 2024 acquisition of the historic almost 100-year-old Westwood Village Theatre may prove one of his most lasting legal legacies. Howard and his Glaser Weil team aided the Village Directors Circle in their quest to bring the shuttered and beloved UCLA-adjacent movie palace back to life in collaboration with American Cinematheque.
The Village Directors Circle consists of Reitman, Steven Spielberg, Judd Apatow, Guillermo del Toro, Christopher McQuarrie, Damien Chazelle, Chris Columbus, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Hannah Fidell, Alejandro González Iñárritu, James Gunn, Sian Heder, Rian Johnson, Gil Kenan, Karyn Kusama, Justin Lin, Phil Lord, David Lowery, Chris Miller, Todd Phillips, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Jay Roach, Seth Rogen, Emma Seligman, Emma Thomas, Denis Villeneuve, Lulu Wang, Chloé Zhao and Christopher Nolan.
Exemplified by its 170-foot white Spanish Revival/Art Deco tower, and already showing films like Nolan’s The Odyssey, the 1000-plus-seat Westwood Village is set to undergo a 12-month multimillion-dollar renovation later this year.
Born on December 5, 1944 in Los Angeles, Howard received his bachelor’s degree from UCLA, where he was recognized as the Outstanding Graduating Senior. He stayed and received his law degree from the UCLA School of Law.
Today, GW founders Patricia Glaser and Peter Weil offered words of loss and praise about Howard, a well-known raconteur who flourished in the often hotly contested and Byzantine world of Hollywood real estate.
“Roger was one of those rare people who made an immediate and lasting impression on everyone he met. He was brilliant, thoughtful, unfailingly kind and deeply loyal to the people he cared about,” Glaser said. “Over the years, I came to admire not only his extraordinary gifts as a lawyer, but the warmth, humility and generosity that defined him as a person. And Roger made practicing law fun. There was no favor you could ask of him that was too big. I will miss him dearly.”
Managing partner Weil added: “There are some people whose presence makes an organization better simply because they are part of it. Roger was one of those people. Roger embodied the very best of our profession. He built an extraordinary career marked by excellence, sound judgment and unwavering dedication to his clients, but those achievements were surpassed only by his character. He was generous with his time, devoted to his family and friends and deeply respected by everyone who had the privilege of working alongside him. Roger brought out the best in those around him and his friendship was a gift. Roger leaves behind a lasting legacy at Glaser Weil and we are grateful for the many years we shared with him.”
Howard is survived by his wife Linda; his children, Missy and Andy, and their spouses, Glen and Jennifer; along with grandchildren Scott, Brett, Matt, Josh, Ryan and Brooke.
A memorial was held September 1 and his family is sitting shiva.
In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations in Howard’s memory be made to Cedars-Sinai here. A recipient of the Cedars-Sinai Hospital Tower Cancer Research Foundation’s Humanitarian Award, he sat on the Board of Governors of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center among other institutions.
