Andy Weintraub, KCAL Photographer for More Than 20 Years
Weintraub was an avid outdoorsman and a devoted member of the Press Photographers Association of Greater Los Angeles, which he served as president.
In a poignant on-air tribute shortly after his passing, KCAL anchor Sharon Tay described Andy Weintraub as “a face viewers never saw, but you watched his pictures every day.”
That’s for sure. Weintraub, the award-wining videographer who passed away on March 19 of complications from Parkinson’s disease at age 59, started at the station in the 1980s, when it was still known as KHJ-TV. Over the next two decades he brought Los Angeles to life — covering hard news, politics, sports, entertainment and more.
As an L.A. native, Weintraub brought an insider’s eye to his work, which included capturing images of such major breaking news events as fires, floods, earthquakes and riots. There were lighter moments, too: During the “Showtime” era of the Los Angeles Lakers, he was often parked on the floor behind the basket at the Forum, shooting live images of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and the rest of the team. But Weintraub said his all-time favorite assignment was covering the Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy’s legendary flight demonstration squadron. He never forgot the thrill of taking his camera inside one of the jets to shoot video while flying in formation.
Weintraub, who graduated from UC Santa Barbara, loved the outdoors and action sports, and when he wasn’t working, he was likely to be found skiing, scuba diving, sailing and fishing. He was especially drawn to the ocean, and in his final years, he spent as much time as he could on his sailboat, which he docked in Marina del Rey.
Although he cherished his down time, Weintraub was devoted to his work and was a passionate advocate for photography and photographers. He was an advisor, a mentor and for many years was a board member of the Press Photographers Association of Greater Los Angeles, which he also served as president. In addition, he was a founding member of PPAGLA’s Media Access & Information Committee, which wrote the Media Guidebook as an educational guidance document for both media and public safety.
Weintraub was known for cultivating camaraderie in the PPGLA, and over the years he organized many memorable parties and banquets for the membership. In recognition to his many contributions, the PPAGLA honored Weintraub with its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.
His other professional accolades included Los Area Emmy Awards and, in 1999 the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors presented Weintraub with a scroll in acknowledgment of his work with the Los Angeles County Fire Department Lifeguards and with terminally ill children from around the world.
He is survived by his parents, a brother, a sister and his son, Eric.