Bob Laemmle Dies: Laemmle Theatres Owner Was 89

Robert Laemmle, the owner and former president of California’s arthouse chain Laemmle Theaters, has died. He was 89.

Deadline confirms that Robert died on Thursday at Berkley East Healthcare Center in Santa Monica. A cause of death was not immediately known.

Robert’s son Greg Laemmle, who took over as Laemmle Theatres president in 2004, told the Los Angeles Times his father was hospitalized after suffering a fall at his Santa Monica home on Dec. 23.

Born Sept. 5, 1935 in Paris, Bob Laemmle immigrated to the United States with his family in 1938, the same year his father Max and uncle Kurt Laemmle launched their first cinemas in Highland Park. Their uncle Carl Laemmle previously co-founded Universal Pictures in 1912.

Robert joined the family business in 1961 before eventually taking over for his father. Although he retired in 2004, Robert continued going into the office until 2020.

Robert is survived by his wife Michelle and his children Greg, Jessica, Yvonne, Michelle, David, Carri, Mitchell, Maitland and Robert, as well as 13 grandchildren.

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