Death and legacy Bernstein announced his retirement from conducting on October 9, 1990. He died five days later at the age of 72, in his New York apartment at The Dakota, of a heart attack brought on by mesothelioma. A longtime heavy smoker, Bernstein had emphysema from his mid-50s. On the day of his funeral procession through the streets of Manhattan, construction workers removed their hats and waved, calling out "Goodbye, Lenny".See the TV Documentary, Leonard Bernstein: Reaching for the Note, originally shown in the series American Masters on PBS in the U.S., now on DVD. Bernstein is buried near the summit of Battle Hill at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York,Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3rd ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 3707–3708). McFarland & Company. Kindle Edition. next to his wife and with a copy of the score of Mahler's Fifth Symphony lying across his heart.
Death and legacy Bernstein announced his retirement from conducting on October 9, 1990. He died five days later at the age of 72, in his New York apartment at The Dakota, of a heart attack brought on by mesothelioma. A longtime heavy smoker, Bernstein had emphysema from his mid-50s. On the day of his funeral procession through the streets of Manhattan, construction workers removed their hats and waved, calling out "Goodbye, Lenny".See the TV Documentary, Leonard Bernstein: Reaching for the Note, originally shown in the series American Masters on PBS in the U.S., now on DVD. Bernstein is buried near the summit of Battle Hill at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York,Wils?on, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of M!ore Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3rd ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 3707–3708). McFarland & Company. Kindle Edition. next to his wife and with a copy of the score of Mahler's Fifth Symphony lying across his heart.