Lawrence M. "Larry" Goldberg, an eyewitness to the Nuremberg war-crimes trials who later managed post exchanges in postwar Europe and founded several record distribution companies, died of cancer Sept. 23 at his Hunt Valley home. He was 81.
Mr. Goldberg was born in Elizabeth, N.J., and moved with his family to the Bronx, N.Y., in 1937.
After graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School, he was drafted into the Army, and after completing basic training was sent to Europe.
"As a 19-year-old sergeant, he became the manager of the post exchange at the Palace of Justice in Nuremberg, Germany, just as the Nuremberg war-crime trials got under way," said a son, Bennet R. Goldberg of Los Altos, Calif.
"He had a friend on Time magazine that got him a pass, and he was able to see people like Hermann Goering and other high Nazi officials in the box. It made quite an impression on him because he knew he was witnessing history in the making," Mr. Goldberg said.
"He still has the photographs that his Time magazine friend gave him and liked to show them to people who were interested in the trial. It was something he was always very proud of," his son said.
After being discharged from the Army in 1947, he joined the European Exchange System, which later became the Army and Air Force Exchange System that manages PX, or post exchanges.
"In 1949, he joined an audit and inspection team put together by EES to investigate black-market corruption within the PX system throughout occupied Germany and Austria," Mr. Goldberg said.
"The most serious black marketing was uncovered in Vienna, very much in parallel with the theme of Graham Greene's novel The Third Man, that was made into a film starring Orson Welles in 1949," he said.
In 1952, he married Erika Nechansky, a native of Vienna.
Mr. Goldberg, who became an executive with AAFES, lived in Vienna, Frankfurt and Heidelberg until 1961.
He was transferred to Baltimore in 1962 and left the organization that year. He then worked for the prerecorded music distribution industry.
From 1962 to 1974, he worked for Edge Limited, a record company established by Ed Snider, who later became a co-owner of the Philadelphia Eagles.
In 1974, Mr. Goldberg established his own company, Largo Music, which he owned and operated until selling the business in 1983.
He later founded Encore Entertainment, which he sold in 1993, and Softland Corp., an Owings Mills-based company that distributes audio and video entertainment products to the armed forces. The company was sold earlier this year to Allegro Media Group of Portland, Ore.
Mr. Goldberg retired in 1995.
"He was one of the most respected leaders in the prerecorded music distribution industry," his son said.
A classical music and opera fan, Mr. Goldberg, who maintained an apartment in Vienna, enjoyed attending musical performances in London, Vienna and Seattle, as well as in Baltimore.
A particular favorite was Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle.
"He traveled all over the world attending performances of the Ring Cycle," his son said.
Mr. Goldberg enjoyed playing the piano, reading about World War II and doing crossword puzzles. He was also a fan of the old Colts, the Ravens and the Orioles.
Mr. Goldberg had been a member for 41 years of Har Sinai Congregation, 2905 Walnut Ave., Owings Mills, where services will be held at noon Thursday.
In addition to his wife and son, also surviving are two daughters, Karen E. Wolff of San Francisco and Andrea J. Nugent of New York City; a sister, Helene Jukoff of Los Angeles; and six grandchildren.