Lawrence Christon, former Los Angeles Times and Downey Patriot writer, dies at 85

Lawrence “Larry” Christon, former staff writer for the Los Angeles Times, drama critic, groundbreaking comedy critic, author, essayist, and feature writer, has died at 85 from complications of a stroke. His longtime companion, Lynne Heffley, was by his side.

Lawrence Reynolds Christon was born in 1940 in New York to James and Gertrude Christon. He grew up in the then-working-class Manhattan neighborhood of Yorkville, attended the prestigious Horace Mann prep school as a scholarship student, and finished his secondary education in public high schools. When a basketball college scholarship fell through, he spent a year at SUNY at Fredonia, then joined the United States Marine Corps, serving from 1963 to 1969 on active duty and in the reserves. He fell in love with the sunny weather in San Diego, where he was based after infantry training. Thereafter, Los Angeles became his home.

In an era where a bachelor’s degree is standard for journalists, advanced degrees are common, and military experience is rare, Christon was a throwback to the time when journalists were often veterans making their mark with street smarts and native writing talent. His work as a freelance theater reviewer at the former Los Angeles Herald Examiner caught the attention of the Los Angeles Times’ then-Theater Critic, Dan Sullivan, who invited Christon to come aboard in 1972. He was a recipient of the Los Angeles Press Club Award for Excellence in Journalism as an entertainment reporter, and he became the country’s first serious comedy critic for a major newspaper, playing a significant part in developing respect for stand-up comedy as dramatic art. After leaving the Times in 1995, Christon was a regular contributor to Variety magazine and numerous other publications, known for his insightful celebrity profiles and thought-provoking cultural essays.

Christon was shaped intellectually by the remarkable depth of his reading, his wide-ranging interests in music, art, poetry, literature, philosophy, by his athleticism—basketball and tennis were lifelong passions—and by his lived experience. As a young teen, he would read the theater sections of newspapers he delivered; a few years later, he was an audacious, underage devotee of New York jazz clubs. After high school, Christon and a friend spent two summers hitchhiking and hopping freight trains for roundtrips from New York to San Francisco and then to Mexico City.

As a peripatetic reporter and cultural observer, Christon traveled the globe, responding to artistic vitality wherever he found it, filing stories from South Africa, Mainland China, Australia, Brazil, and Western and Eastern Europe, bringing international culture home in an age before social media, inspiring a deeper appreciation of global arts. Closer to home, in his book, Stepping Ahead: A History of South Coast Repertory (2009), Christon told the story of how Tony Award-winning SCR blossomed from humble beginnings into a core component of Orange County performing arts. A long-time resident of Downey, California, he frequently appeared at City Council meetings and in the pages of his local paper, The Downey Patriot, as a fierce proponent of civic support for the arts and cultural identity. He was among a prestigious group of writing instructors who participated in a National Endowment for the Arts initiative, helping U.S. troops write about their wartime experiences. The results were published in the book, Operation Homecoming (Random House, 2006).

Christon is survived by his daughter, Tanya Lauren Christon, and grandchildren Brittany, Kanon, Nicholas, and Madysen (or “Beans” as he lovingly called her). Memorial service and interment are to be private. Mourners wishing to honor Larry’s memory are invited to contribute to the charity of his choice, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.