The oldest of four children, Larry (Louis Lawrence) spent his early childhood in upper Manhattan until the family moved to Little Neck and then Great Neck where he graduated high school. As a young man when he wasn't playing sports, he worked in his grandfather's shoe store on the Lower East Side, delivered newspapers and spent summers as a camp counselor. As a high school graduate he worked in the United States Merchant Marines and traveled to India and North Africa. He attended the University of Houston, CW Post and ultimately graduated from Richmond College on Staten Island. He worked for Dolphin Productions, a film business in Manhattan, drove a cab and worked as a house detective at The Plaza Hotel where he met Nancy, his wife of over 30 years. In the late 1970's he met a private investigator and launched his career in criminal investigations where he worked many newsworthy cases until shortly before his passing.

Larry was a gifted athlete. Throughout his life he enjoyed participating in softball, football, bowling, tennis, running, biking, swimming, roller skating and ice skating. He was a Yankee fan turned Mets fan with several season plans attending games multiple times a week. At his lake house he enjoyed fishing, although rarely “caught”, hiking with the dogs and swam daily rain or shine May through October. He was a voracious reader amassing a wide collection of literature in his lifetime on topics ranging from current areas of interest to signed first editions including mysteries and detective novels. His interest in music was equally as vast and varied, having spent time in his early 20's writing reviews for Billboard Magazine. In addition to his work for Billboard, Larry was published in Murder Ink and Esquire Magazine.

A food devotee, Larry was happy to cook for any size gathering. Masterful on the charcoal grill, his veal chops were beyond imagination. He enjoyed dining out frequenting Chinatown, Little India and local haunts. On many Thursday evenings he could be found with the “poker boys” at Peter Lugers enjoying a steak before the weekly game. But he was equally as happy to enjoy a Nathan's “dog” in Coney Island or a lunch of peanut butter and banana as he was apt to do.

Loving father of Lillian and Nathan, Larry was raised in a reform Jewish home. His serious religious and jewish community interest developed when he befriended a young Lubavitch man. Fridays they would meet in his office building to discuss Torah and put on tefillin. As with all his interests, he delved deeply into Torah study and soon after joined the Temple Beth Emeth v'Ohr Progressive Sharri Zedek board of directors. His temple work was perhaps his greatest life achievement, serving as president during a difficult period of temple growth.

Handsome, charismatic and articulate, Larry was recognized for his use of idioms. Perhaps the one which best suits him is also the one he lived by, “Only boring people get bored.”