Harold Schwartz
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Harold Schwartz | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | March 13, 1910 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died | December 22, 2003 (aged 93) Lady Lake, Florida |
| Organization(s) | Holding Company of the Villages, Inc. |
| Spouses | Mary Louise Lee
(m. 1934; div. 1945)Bernice Newman
(m. 1946–2003) |
| Children | Harold Gary Morse Mary Louise Morse Richard A. Schwartz |
| Relatives | Megan Boone (great-granddaughter) |
Harold Schwartz (March 13, 1910 – December 22, 2003) was an American businessman and real estate developer who along with his son, H. Gary Morse, founded the active adult retirement community The Villages, Florida.
Harold Schwartz was born March 13, 1910, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Louis and Katherine Schwartz. Harold was Jewish.[1]
Career
In the 1930s, Schwartz worked as a travelling salesman, selling products for his father's tailoring company until it was forced to close due to the Great Depression.[2]
In 1947, Schwartz began purchasing radio stations, including several "border buster" stations in Mexico.[2] Many of these stations, located just across the border with the United States, operated without proper licenses. Schwartz is credited with the discovery of famed disk jockey and radio personality Wolfman Jack, employing him at his Tijuana, Mexico, radio station in the late 1960s.[3]
In the 1950s and 60s, Schwartz operated a thriving mail-order real estate business, selling plots of land in New Mexico and Florida to customers around the country until federal law banned the practice in 1968.[3]