Joseph Aaron Lazarow (December 17, 1923 – January 3, 2008) was an American politician from

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, who served as the

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Atlantic City, New Jersey from 1976 to 1982, during the period when

casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...

gambling was introduced to the struggling Jersey Shore community.DeAngelis, Martin
"Joseph Lazarow, who led Atlantic City through start of casino era, dies at 84"
, ''

The Press of Atlantic City ''The Press of Atlantic City'' is the fourth-largest daily newspaper in New Jersey. Originally based in Pleasantville, it is the primary newspaper for southeastern New Jersey and the Jersey Shore. The newspaper designated market runs from Ware ...

'', January 4, 2008. Accessed January 4, 2008.

Biography

Lazarow was born in Atlantic City in 1923 to Eva and Morris Lazarow, and graduated from

Atlantic City High School Atlantic City High School (ACHS) is a comprehensive public high school in Atlantic City, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. It is the lone secondary school of the Atlantic City School District. The current school building opened ...

. His attendance at

Rutgers University-New Brunswick Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

was cut short by his enlistment in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, where he served from 1942 to 1945 as a private. After his discharge, he returned to Rutgers and ultimately moved on to

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...

, where he completed both his undergraduate and law degrees.Urgo, Jacqueline L
"Joseph Lazarow, 84, dies; helped bring casinos to A.C."
''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'', January 5, 2008. Accessed January 5, 2008. He had been elected to the City Commission in 1972, and was selected by his peers to serve as mayor in 1976. As mayor, Lazarow was named chairman of the Committee to Rebuild Atlantic City, a group developed to support the passage of the 1976 statewide referendum that approved gambling in New Jersey. He unsuccessfully opposed construction of casinos on the city's four-mile (6 km) long

Boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of brid ...

, citing concerns that the area's residents, advocating that the hotels should be cited in unused wetlands on the city's outskirts. Lazarow worked with New Jersey's governor and other state officials to obtain aid to construct low-cost housing for the poor and elderly displaced by construction projects. An effort by Lazarow to restrict casino jobs to Atlantic City residents was similarly unsuccessful. With Lazarow on hand, Resorts International Hotel and Casino opened on May 26, 1978, the first legalized gambling casino on the East Coast of the United States and the first outside

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

.Clarity, James F
"It's 'Place Your Bets' at Opening Of First Gambling Casino in East An Inlay of Gaudiness 'So Far, It Looks Good' 'It Rained Quarters' Huge Crowds Expected Minority Groups Complain"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', May 27, 1978. Lazarow was recognized by the '' Guinness Book of World Records'' for a July 1977 publicity stunt, in which the mayor shook more than 11,000 hands in a single day, breaking the record previously held by

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

, who had set the record with 8,513

handshake A handshake is a globally widespread, brief greeting or parting tradition in which two people grasp one of each other's like hands, in most cases accompanied by a brief up-and-down movement of the grasped hands. Customs surrounding handshakes a ...

s at a

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

reception on January 1, 1907. He had lived in the city's Lower Chelsea section since the mid-1950s, until the 1993 death of his wife, the former Fredlyn Pogach of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

. Lazarow moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 1995. He died in

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

on January 3, 2008 at the age of 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lazarow, Joseph 1923 births 2008 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II Atlantic City High School alumni Mayors of Atlantic City, New Jersey New Jersey city council members New Jersey lawyers Jewish mayors of places in the United States Rutgers University alumni Temple University alumni United States Army soldiers Temple University Beasley School of Law alumni 20th-century American politicians Jewish American people in New Jersey politics 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews

Biography

See also

References