Alvan Edward Kallman (March 13, 1902 – September 1, 1964) was an American hotelier. Kallman was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to Charles Kallman and Regina Kallman. His father died when he was ten or eleven. Kallman was a barnstorming pilot and later an

air mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...

pilot in the early 20th century. After retiring from flying, he worked for the

Hotel St. George Hotel St. George is a building in Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn, New York City, which was once the city's largest hotel. The hotel is within the Brooklyn Heights Historic District. The hotel was originally created by Union Navy Captain William T ...

in New York, serving as banquet manager from 1930 to 1939 (being the youngest banquet manager in the industry when appointed), then serving as

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

from 1939 to 1943. Kallman then became owner of

The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel is a grand hotel and ski resort located in Dixville Notch in New Hampshire, United States. The resort grounds cover and feature of cross-country ski trails, an alpine ski area with 16 trails, five glade areas and ...

Dixville Notch, New Hampshire Dixville Notch is an unincorporated community in Dixville township, Coos County, New Hampshire, United States. The population of the township, all of whom live in Dixville Notch, was 4 as of the 2020 census. The village is known for being one o ...

and in 1946 part-owner (with Benno Bechhold and Harry Socoloff) of Feltman's, the large iconic complex at

Coney Island Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...

containing the world's largest restaurant and other attractions, buying it from founder

Charles Feltman __FORCETOC__ Charles Feltman (1841–1910) was a German-American restaurateur. He is one of several claimed inventors of the hot dog. From pushcart to restaurant mogul Feltman was born in 1841 in Germany and emigrated to America in 1856, at the ag ...

's family. He also owned the

Savoy-Plaza Hotel The Savoy-Plaza Hotel was a 33-story hotel overlooking Central Park at Fifth Avenue and East 59th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It opened in 1927 and was demolished in 1965. History Original Savoy Hotel The original Savoy Hotel at ...

in New York. In 1953, Kallman bought the then-new St. Johns Hotel in the Vedado district of

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, and a few years later added ten more stories. Following the Cuban Revolution, the

Castro government The political career of Fidel Castro saw Cuba undergo significant economic, political, and social changes. In the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro and an associated group of revolutionaries toppled the ruling government of Fulgencio Batista, forcin ...

nationalized his property in 1960 and expelled him from Cuba, wiping out his fortune. He died in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

in 1964. Kallman was married to Zara Whitman Kallman (1899 – 1988), a former Broadway actress. He had two sons, actor and singer Dick Kallman, and intelligence officer Charles Kallman.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kallman, Alvan 1902 births 1964 deaths American hoteliers