Elliot Karlan, Marin news photographer, dies at 74

Jun 14, 2023

Edward Elliot Karlan, a longtime photographer for the Ark newspaper in southern Marin, died Tuesday at the age of 74.

Mr. Karlan died of a heart condition at Sutter Health’s California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, said Taffy Dollard, his former wife.

“Elliot had many, many friends, especially in the Belvedere-Tiburon peninsula,” said Dollard, 74, a resident of Tiburon. “He loved his job and often said it to me. He was always helping people ahead of his own needs.”

The Ark is a weekly newspaper serving readers in Tiburon, Belvedere and Strawberry. Over his many years covering stories and taking assignments on the Tiburon peninsula, Mr. Karlan met ordinary citizens, elected officials, public safety workers and celebrities.

Kevin Hessel, editor of the Ark, said he had known Mr. Karlan for about 12 years. Even in his final days, Mr. Karlan had corresponded with his editor about assignments and photographs.

Hessel said Mr. Karlan had been “the face of the Ark” for more than 25 years.

“You name it, he’s out there at any event,” Hessel said. “He was there for everything and knew everybody. He really just became a really deep part of the fabric of the community.”

Mr. Karlan required heart surgery about three years ago, but it did nothing to quell his passion for work, Hessel said.

“He had an amazing personality. He was funny and kind and is going to be missed by a whole, whole lot of people,” Hessel said.

Dollard said Mr. Karlan was born in New York. He moved to California in the 1970s and had an auto repair business in San Francisco for many years prior to pursuing photography as a full-time job.

Cindy Siciliano, owner of Cindy’s Hair Studio in Tiburon, said she knew Mr. Karlan for more than 40 years.

“He was a one-of-a-kind friend,” Siciliano said.

Siciliano, a resident of Mill Valley, said Mr. Karlan mentored her in photography. She sometimes took over assignments for him after his heart operation.

Siciliano said he enjoyed motorcycle rides, driving his white Cadillac in downtown Tiburon, eating barbecued oysters and engaging in conversation with friends.

“We were like brother and sister. This was a big loss,” she said. “The community is mourning right now.”

Greenbrae resident Tom O’Neil, a friend of Mr. Karlan, said they often bonded over photography.

“Elliot was a Canon man and I am a complete Nikon man,” O’Neil said. “We really got to know each other by quibbling over your camera equipment.”

O’Neil, who said he lived in Tiburon for more than 50 years, called Mr. Karlan “a man who was completely comfortable in who he was.”

“He had no aspirations of anything different,” O’Neil said. “He had an ongoing condition that would have put most people on the couch. Most people, given that circumstance, physically would not and emotionally could not, but he didn’t give it a second thought about getting up every day happy.”

Mr. Karlan is survived by his son, Weston Karlan, his stepdaughter April Wynkoop, his brother Mitchell Karlan and three grandchildren, said Dollard.

A memorial service is pending.

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