Miriam ‘Mimi’ Harris; Fund-Raiser, Philanthropist

Miriam “Mimi” Harris, 82, fund-raiser, political and charitable hostess and philanthropist who tried unsuccessfully to save the Beverly Hills Club. The native New Yorker earned a bachelor’s degree at New York University and studied at Yale and New York’s New School for Social Research. In Hollywood, she joined Marty Poll to operate the successful motion picture financing company M and M Movies. As a fund-raiser, Harris filled coffers for both parties, the Democrats for John F. Kennedy and Republicans for Ronald Reagan, and for the City of Hope, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Bonds for Israel. In 1972, in partnership with Gene Klein, Harris took over the Beverly Hills Club. But despite her efforts, a year later it was razed to make way for a garage. On Feb. 12 in West Hollywood of lung cancer.