Christian Herrmann Jr., MD
Member Since 1960
Los Angeles, CA
Date of Death: October 23, 2017
Dr. Herrmann, 96, was a distinguished UCLA Professor Emeritus of Neurology and an early expert in EEGs and neuromuscular diseases, including his specialty, myasthenia gravis. He trained with several leading neurologists at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor, the Navy Medical Center San Diego, and the Neurologic Institute of New York, where the diagnostic value of brain waves was being investigated during his residency. When Dr. Herrmann joined the UCLA faculty in 1954 as its second academic neurologist, however, no one could have foreseen that 63 years later, he would remain active there, still attending Grand Rounds and assisting with students' education. Thousands of patients and generations of students benefited from his dedication and expertise. In addition, he served as Vice Chair of the Neurology Department and Chair of the Residency Selection Committee for 17 years.
His colleagues remember Christian Herrmann as kind, patient and thorough, a true "neurologist's neurologist," who taught them both the science and the art of medicine. And UCLA, which honored him in 2008 by giving his name to a conference room in the Reed Neurological Research Center, will fly its flags at half-mast on December 7th in his memory. Reared in Lansing, MI, Dr. Herrmann was the son of Christian Herrmann, a tailor and haberdasher, and Agnes (Bauch) Herrmann, a talented conservatory graduate who taught piano and voice in their handsome brick home.
Thanks to her, Dr. Herrmann became a proficient musician and pipe organ aficionado, who continued to play piano and organ in his retirement condominium. And thanks to the old-fashioned plug on her curling iron, he became fascinated with electricity, an interest that later prompted both his professional and avocational pursuits. His childhood home, known as Herrmann House, now belongs to Lansing Community College, where it is the residence of the college's president and an official historical site. In 1995, Dr. Herrmann's generosity extended it with a solarium and conference center.
Times spent in that home and at the family's cottage in Petoskey, MI, were among his most cherished memories. For the final 31 years of his life, Dr. Herrmann lived in Pacific Palisades, where he contributed to the Edgewater Towers Homeowners' Association in countless ways, including a term as its President. On October 28th, friends and colleagues gathered on its grounds, overlooking the ocean, to remember him. A graveside funeral will be held in Lansing, MI, when he is laid to rest in the Herrmann family plot. Christian Herrmann, Jr. will long be remembered for his fine mind, his enduring friendships, his sense of humor and his unusual breadth of knowledge and interests. He will be missed.
Published in the Los Angeles Times from Nov. 22 to Nov. 26, 2017