Sidney L. Morse, 71; Led L.A.’s California Mart for 30 Years

Sidney L. Morse, 71, once a leading executive in the apparel industry who served as general manager of the California Mart in Los Angeles for 30 years, died Wednesday of complications from leukemia at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, said publicist Dale Olsen.

Since the California Mart was founded in the early 1960s -- by Morse’s father, Barney Morse, and his uncle, Harvey Morse -- it has served as the center of the wholesale garment industry in Los Angeles. The Morse family controlled the center until 1994, when they relinquished control of the facility in the face of a lingering California recession.

A native of New York City, Morse was a teenager when his parents moved the family to Los Angeles.

He graduated from Los Angeles High School and studied at USC and Cal State Sacramento.

He received an associate of arts degree from Sierra College.