Robert W. Rubin, an entertainment executive who held high positions at Universal and Sony Pictures, has died on Monday, June 1. He had been diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer one year prior.
Rubin’s career started at NBC/Universal in 1987 as an attorney for the Universal Motion Picture Group. Three years later, he was promoted to the position of Senior Vice President of Business Affairs. In 1998, he transitioned to Executive Vice President for Universal Home Entertainment Productions and later became Executive Vice President of Universal Worldwide Entertainment.
He moved from Universal to Sony to become Sony Pictures Home Entertainment’s Executive Vice President.
The entertainment veteran from Yonkers, New York, founded Hollywood2Go in 2011, a series of organized seminars that provide a behind-the-scenes peek into Hollywood.
On his downtime, Rubin’s interests consisted of film preservation and photography. His passion for the arts led him to become Vice Chairman of the Board of the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, New York. As its Vice Chairman, he was a crucial figure in the collection, preservation and restoration of rare films and fine-art photography collected from all over the world.
He attended the University of Rochester, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. He also attended the University of Southern California Gould School of Law for his Juris Doctorate.
Rubin leaves behind his wife, Melissa, and their 14-year-old son, Charlie.
A memorial service will be held at 12 p.m. on Monday, June 8, at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills. Instead of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to Rubin’s organization Royal Way or to the Bob Rubin Family Fund, which is dedicated to his son’s education.