News

By Bill Hirschman
 
    BOCA RATON — Businessman Jay H. Harris was not famous outside of theatrical circles in South Florida. But within that community, Mr. Harris was revered for his incalculable investment of time, advice and money that fueled its evolution from a region known for dinner theater into a significant center of theatrical excellence.
    Mr. Harris, of Boca Raton, died June 20 at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale at age 77 from complications during surgery to repair a prior hip replacement, said publicist and friend Savannah Whaley.
    Mr. Harris quietly, often anonymously underwrote scores upon scores of productions in South Florida, sometimes at major institutional theaters with six-figure budgets, sometimes providing crucial support for companies operating on a shoestring in venues the size of a living room.
    One company he helped was The Promethean Theatre in Davie. Co-founder Deborah L. Sherman wrote, “Just say that without Jay Harris, South Florida theater could not have existed. … It would have collapsed without his patronage of the entire community.”
    Funding often came with the hands-on unvarnished and even blunt advice resulting from decades of experience as a producer on and Off-Broadway as well as across the U.S., Canada, England and Scotland. Among the best-known productions he developed were Say Goodnight, Gracie, Rupert Holmes’ one-man show about George Burns, and the world premiere of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Anna in the Tropics.
    In the spring of 2012, Mr. Harris received the highest award the local theater community can bestow: the George Abbott Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts.
    He was president of T & E Productions and Jay H. Harris, LLC of Boca Raton, and a founding member of JenKay, LLC of New York City. Harris also was a member of The League of American Theaters and Producers and a Tony Award voter.
    He was a full owner in the St. Joseph Express in the U.S. Baseball League in Missouri and a partial owner of another team.
    Mr. Harris was a primary force in revamping the Carbonells, South Florida’s equivalent of the Tony Awards for theatrical excellence.
    Raised in the Bronx, Mr. Harris later served in the Navy. He attended Hunter College and the City College of New York before graduating from RCA institute where he majored in electronics.
    During a business career that spanned nearly four decades, he served in many executive leadership positions including COO of International Controls Corp.
    He is survived by a brother, Alan Harris of Miami Beach, and his executive assistant and longtime friend of 30 years, Candice Dobin.
Services will be private and the family has requested that donations not be made. But a celebration of his life is being planned by his friends for later this summer.
    His straight-talking delivery of his opinions endeared him to some and alienated others. Veteran actress Barbara Bradshaw wrote, “Jay could be blunt, irascible, and the best lunch date a person could ever ask for. He loved South Florida theater and his support was directly responsible for a large portion of its growth, survival and ongoing success … often quietly and behind the scenes … not for recognition, but for what he believed in. He also had a huge heart, blushed when hugged … and a wealth of knowledge that never ceased to amaze me.”
    Bill Hirschman owns and operates Floridatheateronstage.com.