HOWARD JAFFE OBITUARY

September 10, 1941 – June 19, 2025

Howard M Jaffe, born 9/10/41, died on 6/19/25 in the Glacier Lily memory care unit of Willamette View in Portland, OR. He had been living with Alzheimer’s for several years. He was liked by everyone and known for his gentle ways, incessant puns, love of music, nonjudgmental curiosity, and spot-on Donald Duck impression.

Howard was born in Philadelphia to Moe Jaffe and Gladys (Matusow) Jaffe, the youngest of three children; Ann was 5 years older than him and Bob 6. When Howard was young they moved to Teaneck, NJ, just over the George Washington Bridge from New York City. Moe was a professional songwriter, song publisher, and occasional bandleader whose hundreds of songs were recorded by luminaries including Frank Sinatra, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Howard quickly picked up his father’s gift for music and witty songwriting; when he ran for class treasurer in junior high, he recorded a campaign song, preserved on a 78rpm record. (He lost the election, because, in retrospect, he was “too much of a wise ass.”) Howard’s creativity extended beyond music; he was always drawn to the written word as a mode of expression, performance, and persuasion.

Following in the footsteps of both his parents and siblings, Howard attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he majored in journalism and joined Jewish fraternity Sigma Alpha Mu. His college career was most defined by his involvement in Penn’s Mask and Wig Club, a satirical musical comedy troupe that wrote and produced its own wildly popular shows.

Howard began his journey as a professional writer in radio and television, covering roles from overnight news broadcaster to promotions to eventually writing and producing TV programs at WCBS and WNEW in New York and WJZ in Baltimore, bringing to the people programs including Wonderama, Earth Lab, and variety/talk show From A to Zenker. Somewhere in there he also joined the Army Reserve National Guard. His family knows little of his time in basic training and reserves beyond the fact that he once convinced his group to do a bunny-hop congo line when their CO called for exercises.

In 1973, Howard made the shift to writing for business, including training, marketing, and corporate communications, when he was hired at Teletape productions—a job most significant because of the regular Sardi’s meet-ups attended by Teletapers old and new, where Howard met a certain Joyce Stoff. The two were married in 1976 and welcomed their daughter, Sara, in 1977, and son Mark in 1982.

After a stint in Park Slope, Brooklyn, a series of events found Howard and his family returning in the early 1980s to Teaneck, taking up residence in the house he grew up in. Asked if he ever felt strange living amid the ghosts of his own childhood, he shared that soon after the move he had a dream where his entire early life passed before his eyes—and he never felt strange in the house again.

By this time, Howard was working as a freelance copywriter, a position he maintained for much of his working life. Significantly, he also worked for nearly a decade as Senior Copywriter and Creative Director at Upshot/Siebel Marketing in the 1990s, with Seagram as a primary client. His freelance clients, many of whom he maintained decades-long relationships with, included PepsiCo, MetLife, HBO, and Dewar’s—the latter taking Howard on an epic trip to the birthplace of Scotch, and keeping the family’s liquor cabinet ironically full for a family of light drinkers.

The fact that their dad worked mostly from home meant he was very present in the day-to-day of his kids’ lives—a real gift. Nearly every night before dinner, he played the piano, often joined by one kid or another singing along to show tunes, old standards, and, of course, the songs of Grandpa Moe. He continued to write his own songs and lyrics, with a particular fondness for parodies and tributes, including an unforgettable medley for his father-in-law’s sixty-fifth birthday, and a catchy number aimed at persuading Teaneck residents to vote yes on the school budget.

Howard’s investment in Teaneck’s education system came to its fullest realization during his term on the town’s Board of Education in the early ’90s. In a time of racial and ideological division in the wake of a police killing of a Black teenager, he provided a grounding, bridge-building voice on the Board.

Soon into the new millennium, once the kids were off to college and beyond, Howard and Joyce moved back into their beloved New York City—first to Manhattan, then to Riverdale, in The Bronx. In addition to seeing theater and partaking in city adventures with Joyce, Howard joined a walking group of 70-something old friends, who would walk for miles to a destination neighborhood and end their trek at a local diner. In retirement, Howard and Joyce also spent winters in Palm Desert, CA, where Howard biked, hiked, and, of course, contributed to the annual musical revue.

Howard, like his mother and sister before him, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2022, and began a fairly rapid descent into cognitive dysfunction soon after. In 2023, he and Joyce moved to Portland, OR, to be closer to Sara and her family in Portland and Mark and his in Olympia. Sara and Mark are grateful that Howard got to know and spend time with his four grandchildren: Sara and partner Nadia’s children Noah and Goldie, and Mark and partner Katie’s children Rowan and Jonah. Even as his faculties for communication declined, he delighted in making goofy faces and silly gestures that would send the grandkids into giggles.

Howard was a wonderful dad, husband, and friend. He was a joyful writer of words and singer of songs. He was generally laid back but could be fiercely protective of his family, who will miss him dearly. Memorial gatherings will be held in early fall in Portland and in 2026 in the New York area. If you wish, please make a donation in his name to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.