Harold Willens

Harold Willens (April 26, 1914 – March 17, 2003) was a Ukraine-born American businessman and political activist. Known for his advocacy of a bilateral nuclear weapons freeze, he was associated with the so-called Malibu Mafia who donated to liberal and progressive causes and politicians. Willens provided the Malibu base of the group by hosting meetings at his house on Malibu Beach.

Willins co-founded the military reform Center for Defense Information in 1972. In 1978, he served on the United Nations Disarmament Commission. In 1982, Willens headed Proposition 12, a successful California ballot initiative calling for a bilateral nuclear weapons freeze between the US and the Soviet Union.

Early life Willens was born in the Chernigov region of the Russian Empire on April 26, 1914, the son of a tailor and a garment worker. He and his Jewish family barely escaped death in the Kiev pogroms (1919), and in 1922 they settled as refugees in the U.S., initially in the Bronx. His sister Doris Willens was born in 1924. The family moved to Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, in 1927. In 1932, Willens graduated from Roosevelt High School. He took a job at a food market to help support his family during the Great Depression. He started a food business with his wife Grace. Leaving much of the business to her, he enrolled in English literature classes at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

Business dealings Willens bought two modest grocery stores on the outskirts of Wilshire Boulevard before he left for war. After he returned, the Wilshire business district expanded to include his properties, and he became a millionaire after a few years.

In 1989, Willens teamed with businessman Wesley Bilson to assist entrepreneurs in the newly opened Soviet Union. One of the projects was the transformation of a Leningrad military base into a factory making children's clothing. Raisa Gorbacheva was supportive of the mission. In Washington, D.C., California Representative Mel Levine spoke in favor, saying that such joint deals will help to "lessen the tensions that exist between our two countries." In 1975, Willens urged his wealthy friends to form the Energy Action Committee (EAC), initially funded with $500,000 for the purpose of countering the political power of Big Oil. Willens hosted many political meetings at his Malibu home, including one attended by Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Neil Diamond and Warren Beatty. In 1972, he co-founded the Center for Defense Information, a nonprofit group composed of retired military officers who aim for military reform.

Willens was convinced that Jimmy Carter would work to halt the arms race, and so he donated his time and money to Carter's campaign in the 1976 United States presidential election. Willens and Carter discussed nuclear weapons reductions at length; the two became close. After Carter won, Willens and Paul Newman were invited to dine at the White House where Carter "made certain commitments", according to Willens. Willens was appointed by Carter to the United Nations Disarmament Commission which met in New York in 1978. Willens felt betrayed when Carter declined to speak or even appear at the conference, undermining its purpose. After that, Willens abandoned Carter, saying "My candidate for president is the nuclear freeze." Actor Paul Newman attracted publicity by announcing his support. In January 1982, Willens spoke before Congress on the topic of nuclear freeze. By October, about $1.8 million had been spent on the campaign, with most of it from Willens. Willens later said that $4 million was raised in total.

Willens published a book in 1984, The Trimtab Factor, which details how wealthy donors can stop the nuclear arms race. The name of the book comes from a mechanical trim tab on a boat or airplane, designed to make it easier to change direction while in motion.

Personal life Willens lived in Santa Monica, California, during the 1960s, and was president of the Beverly Hills Tennis Club, organizing Pancho Segura Day in 1966 to raise money for the club's tennis pro. He moved to Malibu in the 1970s, to live on the beach in a two-story home in the affluent community known as "The Colony" on Malibu Point. He had two sons and one daughter: Larry, Ron and Michele. Later in life, he shifted between the Malibu house, a condo in Rancho Mirage where he played tennis with Spiro Agnew, and a third residence in Brentwood, Los Angeles.

He was a Jewish atheist. Regarding political contributions, he once said, "there is a widely held myth that... the potential contributor... has a certain number of dollars... and if someone else takes the dollars away, I won't get it... [A contribution] works just the opposite... it opens them up. It's a catalytic agent on the generosity, and then they tend to give more and more and more."

Willens died of heart failure at his home in Brentwood on March 17, 2003, at the age of 88.