Walter Weir Klein

Thursday, September 11, 2025, Walter W. Klein passed from natural causes. He had been in hospice care in Visalia, California. He was 92. Born in Los Angeles on New Year's Eve of 1932, he would wander the back lot of Paramount Pictures, where the restaurant of his parents, Walter & Georgia, was located. He excelled academically in his youth and went on to attend Pomona College (graduated the class of 1954), majoring in Spanish. He continued his doctoral work in political science at Northwestern University with a focus on the tumultuous region of Latin America in the 1960s. His primary focus of research was on Guatemala, where he lived for several years. In addition to his academic work, he proudly served in the United States Army, where he first got experience in legal work. This interest later spurred him to pursue becoming a civilian lawyer. Walter was a college Professor of Political Science, teaching at various institutions. He met and married Laura Andrus, his second wife, at the University of Northern Colorado, where she was also a professor. The two moved to Los Angeles to support his aging parents with their four boys (2 each from previous marriages, with Robert and Richard being Laura's sons, and Stephen and Matthew being Walter's). On his return to Los Angeles, Walter went back to school and studied film, receiving an M.A. at Columbia College. With his new degree, he began a new career in the film industry, working on various production projects, including becoming an editor for movies and television. Later, he was in charge of a sound editing house, which led to Emmy nominations and a few wins for his teams. After retiring from the film industry, he once again went back to school. This time at Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles. He was the oldest student in his class and was joined in this academic pursuit by Laura. They graduated together in the class of 2000. He became a practicing lawyer after passing the California bar exam. In addition to his own pro bono work as a juvenile justice attorney, he was active in giving support to other attorneys (legal research or writing motions) as recently as 2023. Walter leaves Laura, four sons and four grandchildren: Luke, Madeleine, Mira and Elizabeth. Service Of Remembrance services will be held 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM Sunday, September 28th, 2025 at Salser and Dillard Funeral Chapel, 127 E Caldwell Ave, Visalia. Services have been entrusted to Salser & Dillard Funeral Chapel. Memorial Tributes and condolences may be offered by logging onto www.salseranddillard.com.

Walter Weir Klein

December 31, 1932 - September 11, 2025