Obituaries

Death Notice: Hospital and Pinball Pioneer Alvin J. Gottlieb, Formerly of Elmhurst

A funeral service for Mr. Gottlieb will be held Friday in River Forest.

Alvin J. Gottlieb, 86, formerly of Elmhurst, died Monday, Oct. 14, in Florida. His parents, Dorothy and David Gottlieb, established Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park in 1961. Alvin Gottlieb was very involved in overseeing the construction of the hospital, and he was dedicated to hospital operations for many years.

Mr. Gottlieb also was an inventor and a pinball pioneer; his family established D. Gottlieb & Co. Pinball in Chicago in 1927. Dozens of pinball fans expressed their condolences this week on online pinball discussion boards, like this one.

Locally, according to an April 1989 Tribune article, Mr. Gottlieb was named Man of the Year for his support of the Center for Speech and Language Disorders in Elmhurst.

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Mr. Gottlieb is survived by his children, Laura, Daniel, Michael and Joseph; his grandchildren, Stephan, Lisa, Aryeh, Zvi, Nathan, Noah, Mitchell and Maxwell; and his great-grandchildren, Mordechai, Ayla and Eden. 

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 18, at West Suburban Temple Har Zion, 1040 N. Harlem Ave., River Forest. 

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Additional obituary information for Mr. Gottlieb can be found on The Chicago Tribune website, and on the West Suburban Temple Har Zion website


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