{"id":2297,"date":"2026-07-09T10:05:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T05:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=2297"},"modified":"2026-07-09T10:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T05:05:06","slug":"george-j-cotliar-dead-former-l-a-times-managing-editor-was-94","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=2297","title":{"rendered":"George J. Cotliar dead: Former L.A. Times managing editor was 94"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-element=\"story-body\" data-subscriber-content=\"\">\n<p>George J. Cotliar, who served as managing editor of the L.A. Times for 19 years during a 40-year career at the paper, has died. <\/p>\n<p>Cotliar\u2019s daughter, Sharon Cotliar-Zweifach, confirmed that Cotliar died in his sleep early Monday at his home in Newport Beach. He was 94. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur dad\u2019s first love was journalism, and as much as he was an incredible, dedicated father, we very much knew we were growing up with a newspaper man,\u201d Cotliar-Zweifach told The Times on Wednesday. \u201cHe set the bar high in terms of honesty, integrity and treating people with respect. We understood that\u2019s how he operated \u2014 in his work and with his colleagues and with us.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>George Cotliar was born Jan. 16, 1932, in the Bronx to Russian immigrants. When he was 5, his family moved to Los Angeles and settled into what he liked to joke was the \u201cslums of Beverly Hills.\u201d He attended Beverly Hills High School, Los Angeles City College and, ultimately, Cal State Los Angeles, where he earned a degree in journalism. <\/p>\n<p>After working at an assortment of local papers around Los Angeles, Cotliar caught wind that The Times had an opening. He took a $13-a-week pay cut to get his foot in the door and one step closer to the goal he\u2019d set for himself while working a newspaper route at 11 years old: to run the Los Angeles Times. <\/p>\n<p>He was hired as a reporter for the Westside section and promoted a year later to editor of The Times\u2019 suburban section; after another year, he took on a copy editor role before becoming a copy chief and then editor of special sections at the paper. He worked assignments in the Metro and National departments, spent two years as managing editor of The Times\u2019 Orange County edition, and after 21 years of becoming well-acquainted with myriad roles at the paper, he nabbed the title he\u2019d been working toward since grade school: managing editor. <\/p>\n<p>Under his watch, the paper\u2019s coverage won 10 Pulitzer Prizes and numerous other accolades. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was a terrific manager devoted to the readers of the paper, specifically in how the paper presented the news on Page 1,\u201d former Times National Editor Roger Smith said Tuesday. \u201cHe was always striving for the best stories and the best balance possible every day, and when I say every day, I mean every day. He was an L.A. person. He knew the city and he knew the county.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As notorious as Cotliar was for his accurate calls on election night,  impressive memory, devotion to journalism and love for college basketball and the Los Angeles Times, he was also known around the newsroom for his occasional near-slapstick temper. Whether it was calling the mayor an \u201ca\u2014\u201d when he thought he\u2019d been hung up on or slamming the return key of his typewriter so hard that it flew off, there was never a dull moment with Cotliar at the helm. <\/p>\n<div class=\"enhancement\" data-click=\"enhancement\" data-align-center=\"\">\n<figure class=\"figure m-0\"> <picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/e83e8f6\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/320x266!\/format\/webp\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 320w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/f9c75e6\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/568x471!\/format\/webp\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 568w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/0d0b12e\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/768x637!\/format\/webp\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 768w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/277cfb9\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/1024x850!\/format\/webp\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 1024w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/9ff398e\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/1200x996!\/format\/webp\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 1200w\" sizes=\"100vw\"\/><img class=\"image\" alt=\"Los Angeles Managing Editor George Cotliar, right, greets King Hussein of Jordan at a reception at the Times, circa 1980s. \" srcset=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/b3b2092\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/320x266!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 320w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/5bc9065\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/568x471!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 568w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/56ba65d\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/768x637!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 768w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/8bb6a83\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/1024x850!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 1024w,https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/8ab2e03\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/1200x996!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 100vw\" width=\"1200\" height=\"996\" src=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/8ab2e03\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2490+0+0\/resize\/1200x996!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fzbk%2Fdamlat_images%2FLA%2FLA_PHOTO_SELECTS%2F2018_06%2Fme_bob_gibson_obit_2%282%29.JPG\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>   <\/picture>\n<div class=\"figure-content\">\n<p>L.A. Times Managing Editor George Cotliar, right, greets King Hussein of Jordan at a reception at the newspaper\u2019s downtown Los Angeles building in the 1980s. Robert W. Gibson, editor of The Times\u2019 Foreign section, is seen in the background. <\/p>\n<p>(Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<p>Cotliar married Pearl Ruth Gottlieb on Aug. 24, 1958. She died in December 2011. <\/p>\n<p>He is survived by his son, David Cotliar, and his spouse, Kenneth Wang; his daughter, Sharon Cotliar-Zweifach, and her spouse, Dr. Eric Zweifach; and two grandchildren, Abigail Zweifach-Coles and Joshua Zweifach.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>George J. Cotliar, who served as managing editor of the L.A. Times for 19 years during a 40-year career at the paper, has died. Cotliar\u2019s daughter, Sharon Cotliar-Zweifach, confirmed that Cotliar died in his sleep early Monday at his home in Newport Beach. He was 94. \u201cOur dad\u2019s first love was journalism, and as much&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2298,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/a80d0ea\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3328x1747+0+61\/resize\/1200x630!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F00%2F01%2F14e3bf124153baea26058b3764dd%2Fgeorge-cotliar.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2298"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}