Harold P. Levy; Expert on Public Relations

Harold P. Levy, veteran public relations professional and writer, has died of pancreatic cancer at a Pasadena convalescent home, his family announced Thursday. He was 82.

Born in Trinidad, Colo., on March 8, 1907, Levy grew up in Seattle, graduated from the University of Washington, and spent five years as a reporter for the Seattle Times. He moved to New York City in 1934 at the height of the Depression and began handling public relations and research for social welfare agencies.

Levy wrote four books based on that work--”A Study in Public Relations,” “Building a Popular Movement,” “Public Relations for Social Agencies,” and the autobiographical “There Were Days Like That.”

“One hint of meaningful change is a new, calmer response on my part to what in earlier days were manifest freeway driving irritations,” Levy wrote in a column about aging for the Los Angeles Times shortly after his retirement at the age of 80.

He is survived by his wife, Alice Klund Levy of Glendale, three nieces and a nephew.