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Edward Gonzalez, 85, a long-time resident of Malibu, California, peacefully passed away on Tuesday, October 2, 2018 in Calabasas after a brave 5-year struggle with heart failure. He was born on February 25, 1933 in Los Angeles to the late Alba Piedra de la Concha of Cuba, and the late Manuel Pedro Gonzalez of the Canary Islands, Spain. He and his older sister, Yolanda, were both raised in Los Angeles. After attending University High School in Los Angeles, he joined the US Navy where he served as a Lieutenant J.G. during the Korean War. Afterwards, he attended UCLA where he graduated and later earned his PhD in Political Science. In 1959, he married Mildred “Millie” Weiss and they had two children, Susan and John. He and Millie were together until her death in 1990. Edward began teaching at Wellesley College in Massachusetts in 1964 while working on his PhD dissertation. In 1967 he began teaching at UCLA in the Department of Political Science, Latin America Studies, specializing in Cuba until his retirement in 1995. In addition to being Professor Emeritus of Political Science, UCLA, he was also a member of the Adjunct staff of the RAND Corporation where he was a policy advisor concentrating on US Foreign Policy between the US and Cuban governments. Over the last 40+ years, he authored and co-authored many reports, studies, essays, articles and non-fiction books on Cuba and Fidel Castro, and on US/Cuba relations. In 2002 he became the published author of a fictional novel, Ernesto’s Ghost, a spy-thriller and love story set in Cuba during the 1970s. A prolific reader, he had an extensive knowledge on a wide range of subjects, and was always a trusted, sought-out source of sound advice. Intelligent, compassionate and caring, warm-hearted, humorous, and generous, he was a much-loved and admired son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, uncle, companion and friend. He was a very knowledgeable movie buff and an avid music lover, with an extensive collection of classical music and eclectic collection of folk music and rock and roll. In the early 1970s he became a skilled fisherman and then taught the rest of the family how to fish. Throughout the decades, the whole family enjoyed countless times together on fishing trips in the Sierras and in Baja, Mexico, or fishing locally in Malibu. He treasured the outdoors and nature, loved to hike, ride horses and travel. He had a special bond with his Doberman Pinscher “Griffie” and a love for German Shepherd Dogs. Edward was a very active, healthy and athletic man who played tennis every week for many years. He kept very busy and was always able to balance his time between work and time with his family and friends. He taught himself how to cook and became quite good at it. He enjoyed entertaining and his cooking was something everyone looked forward to. He loved to travel and vacationed in many different domestic and international destinations with his late wife, family and friends. After his retirement, he and his partner Beth Levin, also traveled to many exotic, interesting destinations. Edward was the beloved husband of the late Millie Gonzalez. He was preceded in death by his parents and his older sister, Yolanda Gonzalez Porro. Edward is survived by his daughter, Susan Gonzalez; his son, John Gonzalez and wife Jennifer; his grandchild, Nina Gonzalez; his nephew, Bruce Weiss; and companion/partner Beth Levin, along with many family members and many friends too numerous to list but not forgotten.
