Howard Gittis
| Howard Gittis | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 16, 1934 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. New York, New York |
| Occupation | Attorney |
Howard Gittis (February 16, 1934 – September 17, 2007) was an American attorney known for being a longtime adviser to Ronald Perelman and an adviser to Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo.
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Biography
Howard Gittis was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, graduating from Philadelphia's Central High School.[1] He earned his economics and law degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. He served in the U.S. Air Force at an Illinois airbase. After his military duty, Gittis accepted a job offer from Tom McBride who had just been elected to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.[2] McBride lost his subsequent election, leading McBride to found his namesake law firm and keep Gittis by his side. This led to a merger with Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen where Gittis eventually became managing partner. Gittis worked at Wolf Block for 25 years. He continued in a consulting capacity to Wolf Block for a few years after he relocated to New York with MacAndrews & Forbes, a holding company owned by Ronald Perelman.[2] Gittis and Perelman first met back in the 1970s. Gittis became Perelman's trusted adviser and friend.[3]
Gittis also acted as an adviser for politician Frank Rizzo, whom he successfully defended from an attempted recall.[3]
In 1985, Gittis was recognized by the National Law Journal as one of the top 100 attorneys in the country.[3]
Family
Gittis, the son of Russian immigrants, was the first in his family to go to college.[1] He married twice and had four daughters.[4]
Death
Gittis died in his sleep at his Manhattan home on September 16, 2007, from heart failure.[4]
