Mathew L. Gladstein died on June 18, 2013 at his home in Scarsdale, NY. He was 90 years old. “Mike” was born in New York City where he attended Townsend Harris High School. After graduating at 16 years old, he attended C.C.N.Y. for two years before enlisting in the Army Air Corps. During World War II, he served as a bombardier-navigator with the 15th Air Force in Italy, attaining the rank of first lieutenant. Upon his return, Mike attended Columbia University.
Following an earlier career as an insurance broker and as President of Glenhaven Ltd., he joined Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette in 1970 where he worked to integrate theoretical research with trading strategies utilizing options and derivatives. Today, the presence of professionals with quantitative backgrounds on trading desks is commonplace, but in 1973, a gulf existed between traders and academics, and Mr. Gladstein was one of the forerunners in bringing the two disparate cultures together. After engaging Myron S. Scholes and Robert C. Merton to help implement this effort, Mr. Gladstein co-authored with them, two studies of options that were published in the Journal of Business in 1978 and 1982.

Since 1951 he has been a resident of Scarsdale, NY where he was active in community affairs. He served as the first President of the Akerman Institute in New York and as President of Scarsdale Family Counseling Services. He chaired local fundraising efforts on behalf of the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, U.J.A., Brandeis University and The Scarsdale United Fund.

Mike is survived by his wife of 63 years, the former Edythe Rosenthal, his children, John, Gina and Joshua, and two granddaughters, Anna and Nina Mullen. Mike’s intelligence, his laughter, and his love for his family and friends will forever be remembered and missed; he was our greatest cheerleader.

Published in The New York Times on June 20, 2013.