Envision a remarkable professional meeting orchestrated by an unpretentious host. The venue is exquisite and alluring replete with epicurean fare, exhaustive wine cellars and symphonic musical accompaniments one would anticipate in a Conde Nast travelogue. Evenings satiate participants with gourmet cuisine and romantic dancing often spotlighting our host and enchanting hostess captivating the onlookers as Astair and Rogers would. Splendor aside, the daytime agenda would be comprehensive and provide enriching edification. During the course of the meeting, our host would reveal his passion for life and attention to detail pervades beyond the grandeur, but extends to the practice of dentistry. So you are wondering who is this unassuming and discriminating host I describe? The portrayal is that of a man who enjoys the best life and dentistry has to offer, Dr. Baldwin Marchak.

Baldwin emigrated from what some would describe as paradise, the West Indies. The son of a Chinese entrepreneur in the capital city of Port of Spain, Trindad. His West Indian education was British catholic. Upon graduation at fifteen and without universities in Trindad, he followed the path traveled by most island natives to begin teaching school and was married to Doreen by age eighteen. While teaching at a Catholic Convent, a nun from Nebraska encouraged him to travel to America for college. Nearly all university-bound students in the British controlled islands returned for study in England. This uncustomary divergence led him to UCLA where relatives of Doreen lived. He found the warm climate of southern California to his liking and has resided there ever since. A citizen with degrees from USC and UCLA in Dentistry and Management, respectively, he claims no formidable allegiance to either program on football Saturday. The early years following dental school divided his work efforts between teaching and private practice. In 1973, he opened his own practice in Los Angeles and spent two years studying occlusion and gnathology with Dr. Bill Solberg at UCLA. He has since relocated to Pasadena and maintains an energized office concentrating on esthetics, implants and reconstructive dentistry with his son Chris, a prosthodontist. Baldwin enthusiastically reiterates one of his greatest pleasures in dentistry today is to practice with his son as his own practice transitions to maturity.

Baldwin declared, "I go after things important to me with a passion." The fervor surrounding everything he undertakes inspired him to expand his knowledge and compelled him to complete an MBA program at UCLA. This widened scope of education has enriched his mind and practice, as well as many others on the business of dentistry through numerous continuing education programs worldwide. This visibly keen business sense may have attracted Ken Adisman to invite Baldwin to participate on the Finance Committee of the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Baldwin is now serving as Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee and candidly reports a sense of admiration for both Drs. Adisman and Lang. With zeal and esteem, Baldwin described his business efforts with fundraising for USC endowed scholarships.

His vehement pursuance of excellence includes the enjoyable activities of his life. Baldwin and Doreen have illuminated the dance floor innumerable times for the enjoyment and envy of many. However, this type of exhibition does not come without effort and required fifteen years of lessons dating back to 1974. Doreen continues dance lessons and has competed professionally in the Pro-Am dance circuit attaining World finalist status.

Baldwin ardently admits everything he assumes, he consumes. Appropriately, he states "I am crazy about fine French food." This passionate gastronomic motivation guided him to become Director of the Los Angeles Chapter for the American Institute of Food and Wine during which time he and Doreen have prepared benefit dinners for guests including Julia Child and Robert Mondavi. Doreen, a restaurateur offspring, and Baldwin are predominately self-taught in their culinary talents. Their mutual love for cooking lured them to France for an eighteen-day journey to satiate their appetites for cuisine and knowledge amongst the finest French chefs. Recently, the Baldwin’s completed renovation of their home to include a commercial kitchen and 5000 bottle wine cellar.

In that cellar lies Baldwin’s greatest obsession. Once more, largely self-instructed, he has accumulated a wealth of knowledge on wine. His continual quest for astuteness affords him the talent to discriminate not only the most superb vintage, but also those undervalued for their merit. Baldwin’s favorite highlight of his wine career was an excursion to Burgundy, France to spend eight days with Clive Coates, a renowned authority on Burgundy wine. During this time, Baldwin was permitted to quaff ten vintages of the finest wines of the world. Baldwin is anxiously anticipating a road rally tour through the Louvre Valley vineyards and Bordeaux region of France with a group of wine and car enthusiasts in April.