Jerry Rubin, the son of a Cincinnati truck driver and Teamsters official, was the radical co-founder of the Youth International Party. Prior to his attempt to merge political and lifestyle liberation under the Yippie banner, Rubin had edited a youth page for the Cincinnati Post, studied sociology in Israel, joined the Free Speech Movement and ran for mayor in Berkeley, and led a march on the Pentagon.
Despite an outwardly zany style, Rubin lacked the natural lightheartedness of his Yippie co-founder Abbie Hoffman. Rubin often seemed more tense or anxious during the trial than other defendants. He provided one of the most memorable moments of the trial when he paraded back and forth in front of Judge Hoffman, thrusting his arm in a Nazi salute and shouting "Heil Hitler!"
Yippie turned Yuppie in the 1980's, as Rubin cut his hair and put on a business suit. He worked on Wall Street and became a business entrepreneur.
Jerry Rubin died in November 1994 after being hit by a car while jaywalking on L.A.'s Wilshire Blvd. He was buried at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City, California.