Irving Hirschberg, 88
"The camera that today is in every smartphone, tablet, and modern camcorder is a direct result of the work Irving Hirschberg led during the 1970s and ’80s,” his daughters said this week. Mr. Hirschberg, a year-round resident of Amagansett for the last 35 years, died at Southampton Hospital on Dec. 30 following a heart attack. He was 88.
Beginning in 1960 at the Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation in Syosset, Mr. Hirschberg, as manager of the company’s initial Charge Coupled Device Tri-Service program, was key in the development of a programmer for the Lunar Excursion Module. “Yes, we never understood what he did either,” said his daughters.
He was presented with Fairchild’s Key Technologist Award in 1986 and retired two years later.
Born on June 23, 1927, in the Bronx, to Louis Hirschberg and the former Rose Gluck, Hungarian immigrants, Mr. Hirschberg grew up in Ridgewood, Queens. He graduated from Townsend Harris High School, a public school for the city’s most gifted boys, and was always proud of it. After graduation, not yet 18, he served in the Navy.
A graduate of Cornell University, which he attended on a merit scholarship, he also held an advanced degree in electrical engineering from Columbia University. He had “a great analytical mind,” his daughters said.
Mr. Hirschberg and his wife, the former Phyllis Skolnick, whom he married on March 21, 1954, lived in Great Neck until 1980. They spent their summers at Salter’s, a cottage complex in Amagansett, until 1973, when they bought their house on Bluff Road. Seven years later, they moved there full-time, with Mr. Hirschberg commuting to work in Nassau County until he retired.
They were devoted to each other. “His caregiving toward the end of her life was extraordinary,” said his daughters. Mrs. Hirschberg, an artist, died in January 2011.
In his later years, Mr. Hirschberg became a well-known volunteer in the community. He helped struggling English as a second language students to pass the state Regents exam in history, a topic in which he was well versed, and was a dedicated 20-year member of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, which provides daily telephone safety checks, reassurance, and home visits for senior citizens living alone. His many letters to The Star, frequently on civic or political topics — he was a committed Democrat — often cited the rewards of R.S.V.P., for the volunteer as much as for the recipient.
In his spare time, he was happiest on the tennis court or out in Montauk on the golf course at the Downs. He also enjoyed a good cerebral game of bridge. “Our dad had boundless energy. He loved people, engaging with them and getting involved in their lives. Dad was our cheerleader, our advisor and problem-solver,” his daughters said. He took great pleasure in being a grandfather, they said, having long talks with his grandson about movies, playing games with him on the lawn, and going to the beach with him.
In addition to Lise Hirschberg, who lives in Manhattan, and Wendy Hirschberg, who lives in Brooklyn, he leaves a sister, Shirlee Hirschberg of Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., two nephews, and a niece.
Mr. Hirschberg was cremated. He was a member of Temple Adas Israel in Sag Harbor, where funeral services were held on Sunday, Rabbi Daniel Geffen officiating.
Memorial donations have been suggested to Cinema Arts Centre, 423 Park Avenue, Huntington 11743, or the Southern Poverty Law Center, 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, Ala. 23104