Dixon Q. Dern, a longtime Hollywood attorney who helped shape modern entertainment law through many innovative business deals, died July 19. He was 97.
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Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Dern earned undergraduate and law degrees from Stanford University. He came to Los Angeles as television was becoming a major force in the 1950s, representing major clients like Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.
One of his early clients was “Mr. Magoo” producer UPA Productions, and he went on to represent clients including Bob Hope, Jackie Gleason, The Jackson Five and the Television Academy.
A founding partner of Dern, Mason, Swerdlow & Floum, he helped build the firm’s major entertainment law practice and played a role in the founding of Creative Artists Agency. In his over-seven-decade career, Dern became one of Hollywood’s top attorneys and pioneered groundbreaking business structures.
As head of the legal department, he helped structure the business affairs of Desilu Productions during the period when television syndication became an important economic model.
Dern served as an arbitrator and mediator in entertainment and labor disputes starting in 1967. He served as VP and a Member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California; President of the Beverly Hills Bar Association; Trustee of the Los Angeles County Bar Association; and President of the Los Angeles Copyright Society. In 2009, the Television Academy honored him with its Syd Cassyd Founders Award, recognizing Academy members who have made significant impact’s on the Academy.
He is survived by his children, Chelsea Dern, Warren Dern, Peter Dern, Rosalin Bellante, and Greg Dern, five grandchildren and many great-grandchildren.