An active participant in the Idyllwild Arts Academy and its summer programs, Carl Kenneth Pearlman, M.D., 90, died in his sleep of heart failure on Sunday, Oct. 18, 1998. Mr. Pearlman was at home in Santa Ana at the time.

He was born Aug. 18, 1908, in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, N.Y. Grade school was followed by attendance at Boys High.

From an early age, he knew he wanted to be a physician and follow in the footsteps of his eldest brother. He worked his way through college and received a bachelor of science degree from New York University. He then attended Dalhousie University Medical School in Halifax, Nova Scotia, receiving the Doctor Hattie Prize for highest standing in medicine at graduation.

During WWII, he was a major in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and was stationed for a time in Huntington, W. Va., where he met his wife, Agnes Branch. They were married July 28, 1945.

After completing urological specialty training at the Medical College of Georgia, the Pearlmans moved to Santa Ana in 1948 with two young children.

He served for many years as clinical professor of urology at University of California, Irvine, Medical School. He was chairman of the first expansion fund for St. Joseph Hospital, chief of staff at Santa Ana Community Hospital (now Western Community Hospital) and chief of staff at the former Orange County General Hospital.

In 1984, he was the second physician to be honored as Physician of the Year by the Orange County Medical Association. Dr. Pearlman was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a Diplomate of the American Board of Urology and Professor Emeritus in Clinical Urology at University of California, Irvine. Through the years, he contributed numerous articles to the medical literature and was an innovative practitioner in the field of urology.

He devoted much time to YMCA in Santa Ana. In an effort to aid the plight of world Jewry in the post-war years, he became the first chairman in Orange County of the Bonds for Israel and served as chairman for the United Jewish Welfare Fund.

He served with the Jewish Family Service and the Nursing Home Advisory Committee. He was a member of the board of directors of the Anti-Defamation League and was an honoree of the National Conference of Christians and Jews (now known as the National Conference for Community and Justice).

The Pearlmans gave freely of time and energy to enhance the cultural life of the community. He was proud of the fact that the Orange County Philharmonic Society had its inception in their home about 46 years ago. The couple also served on the board of directors of the Idyllwild Arts Foundation and actively promoted the efforts of the Ecology Center of Southern California, a project of Educational Communications. They have owned a home in Idyllwild since 1955.