Harold Sanford "Hal" Kant (July 29, 1931 – October 19, 2008) was an

entertainment industry Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousan ...

attorney who specialized in representing musical groups. He was best known for his 35 years as principal

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solicit ...

and general counsel for the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, country, jazz, bluegrass, blues, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, world music, ...

, a position in the group that was so strong that his business cards with the band identified his role as "Czar".Barnes, Mike
"Grateful Dead lawyer Hal Kant dies"
''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'', October 22, 2008. Accessed October 24, 2008.

Early life

Hal Kant was born in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

. He earned his law degree at the

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each c ...

. After graduation, he was hired as a clerk in the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

Music business

After starting to practice law on his own, he came to the realization that "the only attorneys in the music business were the attorneys for the record companies, and their job was to get as much money as they could for their company and leave as little as possible for the artists". Kant decided that "the other guys should have an attorney, too" and proceeded to help represent a series of artists including

The Association The Association is an American sunshine pop band from California. During the late 1960s, the band had numerous hits at or near the top of the ''Billboard'' charts (including " Windy", " Cherish", " Never My Love" and " Along Comes Mary") a ...

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

Hot Tuna Hot Tuna is an American blues rock band formed in 1969 by former Jefferson Airplane members Jorma Kaukonen (guitarist/vocals) and Jack Casady (bassist). Although it has always been a fluid aggregation, with musicians coming and going over the y ...

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage presence. ...

New Riders of the Purple Sage New Riders of the Purple Sage is an American country rock band. The group emerged from the psychedelic rock scene in San Francisco in 1969 and its original lineup included several members of the Grateful Dead. The band is sometimes referred t ...

Sonny & Cher Sonny & Cher were an American pop and entertainment duo in the 1960s and 1970s, made up of husband and wife Sonny Bono and Cher. The couple started their career in the mid-1960s as R&B backing singers for record producer Phil Spector. The pair f ...

and

Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble. Although his mainstream career spanned only seven years, ...

. He turned down an opportunity to represent

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

after the group demanded that he only represent them.

Grateful Dead

Kant became best known for his representation of the

, bringing the band millions of dollars in revenue, through his management of the band's intellectual property and merchandising rights. At Kant's recommendation, the group was one of the few

rock 'n roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

pioneers to retain ownership of their music masters and

publishing rights A publishing contract is a legal contract between a publisher and a writer or author (or more than one), to publish original content by the writer(s) or author(s). This may involve a single written work, or a series of works. In the case of music p ...

. Kant's role with the band was so significant that his

business card Business cards are cards bearing business information about a company or individual. They are shared during formal introductions as a convenience and a memory aid. A business card typically includes the giver's name, company or business af ...

s with the band identified himself as "Czar". Kant had plans to donate his legal business records to a proposed Grateful Dead museum to be built in San Francisco. This venture didn't come into fruition so that his experience in the historical development of contracts and business practices could be used as a resource by visitors.

Poker

Kant won the $2,500

Pot Limit Omaha Omaha hold 'em (also known as Omaha holdem or simply Omaha) is a community card poker game similar to Texas hold 'em, where each player is dealt four cards and must make their best hand using exactly two of them, plus exactly three of the five ...

tournament at the 1987 World Series of Poker, earning a gold

WSOP bracelet The World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet is considered the most coveted non-monetary prize a poker player can win. Since 1976, a bracelet has been awarded to the winner of every event at the annual WSOP. Even if the victory occurred before 197 ...

and $174,000. He was the runner-up in the $2,500 Limit Hold'em tournament at the

1990 World Series of Poker The 1990 World Series of Poker (WSOP) was a series of poker tournaments held at Binion's Horseshoe. Preliminary events Main Event There were 194 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter the tournament. For the first time since t ...

. Kant would often have members of the Grateful Dead cheering for him at poker tournaments. During his poker career, Kant had total live tournament winnings exceeding $1,100,000. His 12 cashes as the WSOP account for $524,514 of those winnings.

Death

He died at age 77 in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is th ...

on October 19, 2008 from pancreatic cancer. He was survived by his wife, Jesse, and his three sons, two stepchildren and five grandchildren.

''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pa ...

'', October 23, 2008. Accessed July 5, 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kant, Hal 1931 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American lawyers American poker players Deaths from pancreatic cancer Grateful Dead Harvard Law School alumni Sportspeople from the Bronx Sportspeople from Reno, Nevada World Series of Poker bracelet winners