Stanley I. Weinstein

Stanley Irwin Weinstein of Hampton in Bethlehem Township, NJ, died peacefully at Morristown Memorial Hospital, Morristown, NJ, on Thursday, June 1, 2023. He was 88.

A native of New York City, Mr. Weinstein had a long and diverse career in the performing arts and show business as a freelance musician, manager, administrator, producer, grant writer, project developer, and consultant in arts management and nonprofit organizational development.

Among the positions he held were general assistant to the executive director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, general manager of California’s Ojai Festival, assistant to the dean of the School of Performing Arts at the University of Southern California (Los Angeles), and director of arts and education at the JCC MetroWest (West Orange, NJ). During his tenure with JCC MetroWest, Mr. Weinstein introduced a contemporary music series and a modern dance series that were ground-breaking in New Jersey and attracted attention throughout the New York metropolitan area.

In 1986 Mr. Weinstein launched his own arts management agency, Stanley Weinstein Arts Management, in which he represented a variety of performers, both popular and classical. Over the years he worked with numerous stellar artists, including Karen Akers, Ruth Brown, Peggy Lee, Marilyn Michaels and Mort Sahl. He took special pride in his work with The Copasetics, a major influence in the revival of tap dance. In addition, he produced shows which toured nationally and internationally.

Stanley’s first love was music, a passionate commitment throughout the course of his life. In his early teens he played saxophone and clarinet with dance bands. After picking up the flute as a “double,” he began serious study of the instrument, including master classes with Marcel Moyse, William Kincaid and William Bennett, and was soon performing with symphony and ballet orchestras and chamber ensembles. He regularly attended major orchestral concerts in Carnegie Hall well into his 80s and proudly maintained his membership in Local 802 (New York City), American Federation of Musicians.

Mr. Weinstein held a B.A. in Speech from Queens College of the City University of New York (1956), an M.S. in Education (1967) and a Master’s in Public Administration (1972) from the University of Southern California, and had completed USC’s requirements for a Ph.D. in Public Administration except for the writing of a dissertation.

Stanley had a roving, inquiring mind that explored many interests. He read widely and constantly and enjoyed discussing cultural and social issues. He cared deeply about current affairs. He was a member of the Flemington Jewish Community Center in Flemington, NJ. Stanley’s outlook on life was leavened by a down-to-earth sense of humor. Laughter was never far away when Stanley interacted with people.

Mr. Weinstein is survived by his wife, Ilene Beckerman, his sons, Jed and Heth, four step-children and 10 grandchildren. Graveside services were private.

Graveside life celebration services in Flemington Jewish Community Cemetery, are private under the care and direction of Wright & Ford Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 38 State Highway 31, Flemington, NJ.

You are encouraged to visit Stanley’s permanent life celebration site at www.wrightfamily.com to light a candle of hope, leave messages of condolence, share words of comfort and recollection, and post photographs of his life.

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Wright & Ford, your local, family owned & operated “Life Celebration Home”

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