Harold E. Lebovitz, MD: Legendary Diabetologist.

Harold (Hal) Lebovitz turned 85 years old in October 2016. You wouldn’t know it from his travel schedule. He seems to go to India, or somewhere equally far, at least once a month. Despite long travels, he always shows up looking very perky and full of energy. In Harold’s case, some people will drive as much as 500 miles to attend his presentations, and as onephysician commented, “Oh, yes,Harold Lebovitz is the greatest. I would go any distance to hear him speak.” And, in speaking, he has always adjusted his presentation to fit exactly to the time allocated without apparently looking at his watch. His array of topics spans all of diabetes and is always quite up to date. Harold Emil Lebovitz was born in Pittsburgh, PA, on 13 October 1931 to David (Dave) and FriedaPachman Lebovitz. Harold’s father, Dave, had wanted to be a physician, but his parents told Dave he could never support a family as a physician, so he became a pharmacist. Dave opened Lawrenceville Drugs in Pittsburgh. The family lived above the store and Harold and his older brother, Al, as teenagers and while in college, worked there as soda jerks and helped fill prescriptions. All three of the brothers became physicians: Al, now deceased, was a psychiatrist; Harold is an endocrinologist; and Philip, the youngest, is a cardiologist. Dave continued to work actively as a pharmacist, even after selling his store and moving to Florida, only retiring at age 86. Harold received his undergraduate and medical degrees, in 1952 and 1956, respectively, from the University of Pittsburgh. During his senior year of medical school, he was a Lederle Research Student Fellow in Pathology. He also served as president of AlphaOmega AlphaHonor Medical Society and received the Brinton Prize for highest overall average in medical school. After completing an internship at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, he returned to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for his residency in internal medicine, serving as chief resident under the legendary chairman of medicine, the tyrannical Jack D. Meyers. Known as “Black Jack,” Meyers was rumored to not let anyone finish his training program unless they demonstrated superior clinical skills. Harold then headed south to Duke University Medical Center for a 3-year fellowship in endocrinology and metabolism, completing it in 1962. Following that, he joined the Duke faculty as an associate in medicine. A year later, in 1963, he was promoted to assistant professor, and he was awarded a prestigious 10-year Research Career Development Award Harold Lebovitz at college graduation Harold as a young faculty member