![](https://cdn.statically.io/img/static01.nyt.com/packages/flash/multimedia/ICONS/transparent.png)
From left, Louis Armstrong, the songwriter W.C. Handy and George Avakian in the 1950s. Mr. Avakian helped popularize the long-playing record and organized the first jazz reissue series, preserving the recorded legacies of Armstrong and other pioneers.
Columbia Records; thumbnail, Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images, 2009
George Avakian
Died on November 22, 2017 at age 98
Mr. Avakian was a record producer and talent scout who played a key role in the early careers of Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Keith Jarrett and Bob Newhart, among many others.
Notable Deaths 2017
Remembering Mary Tyler Moore, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lewis, David Rockefeller, Trisha Brown, Glen Campbell, Dick Gregory, Edith Windsor, Sam Shepard, Tom Petty and many others who died this year.