Jerome J. Berchin

Dr. Jerome J. Berchin (Jerry) died peacefully at his home on Friday, November 16, 2018, at the age of 92, after battling congestive heart failure. He had a very diverse and interesting life. Never a dull moment. Jerry studied at USC, as a pre-Med, but the war cut short his college career. He joined the Navy during WWII, at the age of 17, and spent the war in the Pacific Theater, where he was wounded in Okinawa when his ship, the U.S.S. Marathon, was torpedoed, and for which he received a purple heart. He was proud to have served his country, and he talked about his time in the Navy all of his life. Even his license plate had "Veteran, U.S, Navy" on it.


After the war, he returned to USC on the GI Bill. He had a beautiful voice, and replaced Tony Martin one summer on the radio.


He graduated from USC, and became an Optometrist for 20 years. At the age of 40, he decided to go back to school and join his brother in the practice of law, because he needed more excitement. As a successful attorney, he had many interesting cases. He traveled all over the world to take depositions, including Japan, Peru and on the U.S.S. Midway for a wrongful death case. He was caught in a revolution in two South American countries, and barely got out before the borders were closed. He had a famous wrongful death case caused during filming of a major Hollywood movie.


Jerry needed diversity in his life, and he found it. He was outgoing, liked people, was aggressive at times, and fought for the causes he believed in. He enjoyed helping people. If someone was in trouble, he was the first one to respond. He is survived by his wife of 67 years, Marion, and his two sons, Jeffrey and Timothy. Service will be held at Forest Lawn, Glendale on November 27, 2018 at 3 p.m.