Multi-talented judge Ben Altman dies at 95

The legal community knew Benjamin Altman, who died on June 25 at the age of 95, as an indefatigable legal scholar who toiled in the court systems of several counties until near the end of his life.

But Riverdalians of a certain age may remember him better as the man who used his virtuosity as a violinist to bring attention to his successful 1965 campaign for the New York State Assembly.

At the time, the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club was in the ascendancy in its battle to dethrone Charles Buckley, the powerful political leader of Bronx County. Mr. Buckley — who had been instrumental in delivering the borough to John F. Kennedy in his race for the presidency — had lost his seat in Congress in 1964 to Riverdalian Jonathan Bingham, a staunch reformer.

The club anointed attorney Robert Rubinstein as its candidate for the Assembly seat being vacated by Fred W. Eggert and the “regular” Democrats tapped Mr. Altman, who had worked closely with the president’s brother, Robert Kennedy, and helped prepare him for his successful bid to become a United States senator from New York.

Mr. Buckley’s “bossism” was a major issue in the campaign, but it was blunted by Mr. Altman’s personal charm and his willingness to endorse reform causes like direct election of the party’s district leaders.

His daughter, Abby Luby, fondly remembers campaigning with her dad when she was just a child. He organized what he called “culture klatches” at the homes of his supporters, where he enlisted her and her sister, Carole, to join him on the cello and piano while he played the violin.

Ms. Luby said that he was nervous about campaigning, and the music relaxed him for the political appeal that would follow the recital. She still recalls her father’s laughter when he read the response from his primary opponent quoted in The Riverdale Press: “Altman fiddles while Riverdale burns!”