Howard Joseph Samuels (December 3, 1919 – October 26, 1984) was an American statesman, industrialist, civil rights activist and philanthropist who served as

United States Under Secretary of Commerce A United States Under Secretary of Commerce is one of several positions in the United States Department of Commerce, serving under the United States Secretary of Commerce. History In June 1939, Edward J. Noble was appointed the first Under Secreta ...

and Director of the

Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stre ...

under President Johnson, special advisor to the campaign for president by

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

and the administration of President

Carter Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to: Geography United States * Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Carter, Montana, a census-designated place * Carter ...

. A graduate of the

MIT Sloan School of Management The MIT Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan or Sloan) is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT Sloan offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs, ...

, Samuels served as a colonel in the Third Army under General George Patton. Upon conclusion of service, Samuels co-founded the Kordite Corporation. Following the principles he set on his senior thesis, Kordite was the first to produce synthetic products for household consumerism and introduced a number of mainstays including the baggie, wax paper, plastic wrap, disposable kitchenware, and a sturdy trash bag that became the

Hefty Hefty is an American brand of household products such as trash bags and trash cans, disposable tableware, children's disposable tableware (including their defunct '' Zoo Pals'' product line), slider closure food storage and freezer bags, plast ...

brand. The success of the company made Samuels one of the wealthiest New Yorkers, and financially able to enter politics. The Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of New York in 1966 on a ticket headed by Frank D. O'Connor, Samuels also contended unsuccessfully for the nomination for Governor three times from 1962 to 1974. He lost the 1970 primary to

Arthur Goldberg Arthur Joseph Goldberg (August 8, 1908January 19, 1990) was an American statesman and jurist who served as the 9th U.S. Secretary of Labor, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and the 6th United States Ambassador to ...

and the 1974 primary to

Hugh Carey Hugh Leo Carey (April 11, 1919 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and attorney. He was a seven-term U.S. representative from 1961 to 1974 and the 51st governor of New York from 1975 to 1982. He was a member of the Democratic Part ...

. He also served as special aide to New York City Mayor

John Lindsay John Vliet Lindsay (; November 24, 1921 – December 19, 2000) was an American politician and lawyer. During his political career, Lindsay was a U.S. congressman, mayor of New York City, and candidate for U.S. president. He was also a regular ...

prior to his appointment as the first Chairman of the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation. Samuels is credited with alerting voters to the need for a Constitutional Convention, forming the non-partisan group Citizens Committee for Constitutional Convention. Members included Secretaries of the Health, Education & Welfare and Commerce departments in the

Eisenhower administration Dwight D. Eisenhower's tenure as the 34th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1953, and ended on January 20, 1961. Eisenhower, a Republican from Kansas, took office following a landslide victory ...

, numerous Commissioners and administrators to

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

and City agencies, and Senators

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...

and

Christopher Dodd Christopher John Dodd (born May 27, 1944) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1981 to 2011. Dodd is the longest-serving senator in Connecticut's histor ...

. Governor Nelson Rockefeller would later sign the bill. Samuels' foray into national politics was met with resistance and criticism among the traditional political guards of both parties. His resurrection and renewed interpretation of the defunct wartime program Section 8(a) spearheaded the SBA into the forefront of the

civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

. The agency's Project OWN program was the first institutionalized affirmative action and

reparations Reparation(s) may refer to: Christianity * Restitution (theology), the Christian doctrine calling for reparation * Acts of reparation, prayers for repairing the damages of sin History *War reparations **World War I reparations, made from G ...

policy which he dubbed compensatory capitalism, or black capitalism. Though hailed by many civil rights activist and minorities alike, the program faced mounting criticism and disapproval from within the Democratic controlled

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

, members of President Johnson's own cabinet and threats of censorship and dismissal from

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Senators who cited the program as "racism in reverse." As the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

continued into the 1970s, Samuels became the principal financial backer to numerous war marches including John Kerry's Veterans for Vietnam advocacy group. Samuels became a vocal advocate for

drug policy A drug policy is the policy regarding the control and regulation of psychoactive substances (commonly referred to as drugs), particularly those that are addictive or cause physical and mental dependence. While drug policies are generally implemen ...

and rehabilitation in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and State policy following the arrest of his son, Howard Samuels, and revelation of his

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use o ...

to heroin. His pioneering methods in the

petrochemical industry The petrochemical industry is concerned with the production and trade of petrochemicals. A major part is constituted by the plastics (polymer) industry. It directly interfaces with the petroleum industry, especially the downstream sector. Comp ...

and success in the then niche household

consumer A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. ...

market translated into posts as Vice President of the

Mobil Oil Corporation Mobil is a petroleum brand owned and operated by American oil and gas corporation ExxonMobil. The brand was formerly owned and operated by an oil and gas corporation of the same name, which itself merged with Exxon to form ExxonMobil in 1999. ...

, Commissioner of the North American Soccer League, and Chairman to Elms Capital Management, Alexander Proudfoot PLC, and

Communities In Schools Communities In Schools (CIS) is a non-profit organization based in America. CIS works within public and charter schools to help at-risk students. CIS works with schools in 25 states and the District of Columbia. In In February 2020, CIS announce ...

. In 1988, the City University of New York opened the Howard Samuels State Management and Policy Center.

Early life

He graduated from

with an S.B. in Management, and then joined the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

. He served as a lieutenant colonel in the Third Army under General

George S. Patton George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, and the Third United States Army in France ...

. He was present during the liberation of the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

Buchenwald Buchenwald (; literally 'beech forest') was a Nazi concentration camp established on hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within Germany's 1937 borders. Many actual or sus ...

in 1945.

Business career

Kordite

After the war, he and his brother Richard founded the Kordite Company, a firm that manufactured plastic clotheslines, brooms, plastic bags and packaging, and other plastic products such as Baggies and

garbage bags.

State politics

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

, Samuels was among the contenders for the Democratic nomination for Governor of New York, but Robert M. Morgenthau was chosen by the state convention delegates. In 1966, the party rank and file revolted against the wishes of state party leaders and nominated him over Orin D. Lehman for Lieutenant Governor of New York. The ticket, headed by gubernatorial candidate Frank D. O'Connor, was defeated by the

nominees, Gov. Nelson Rockefeller and Lt. Gov. Malcolm Wilson. In 1970, Samuels lost the Democratic primary for governor to former U.S. Supreme Court Justice

1974 New York Governor election

In 1974, Samuels was the Democratic State Committee designee for Governor. He was challenged in the primary election by Congressman Hugh L. Carey, and despite an early lead, Samuels lost again, and Carey was subsequently elected Governor.

City of New York Off-Track Betting

In 1971, Mayor Lindsay chose Samuels to be the first chairman of the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation, a position which earned him the nickname "Howie the Horse."

National politics

Samuels served as U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce in the administration of President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

, and in 1968 was named Director of the

. In 1969, he irritated many in his own party when he supported a liberal Republican, John V. Lindsay, in his successful bid for re-election as Mayor of New York City. In

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

, he challenged

, the Democratic designee for Governor, but lost narrowly in the primary election. That year his political work was interrupted when his son, Howard Samuels, was arrested for marijuana possession in

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

. The son was later arrested for possession of heroin and reported to have developed a heroin addiction. In 1971, Howard J. Samuels was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board.

Family

He married Barbara J. Christie, and they had eight children: William, Carey, Catherine, Victoria, Howard, Barbara, Jacqui and Janine. He later married Antoinette Chautemps, daughter of a Prime Minister of France, Camille Chautemps. They had two children, Camille and Dominique.

Death

On October 26, 1984, Samuels died of a heart attack at his home in New York City. His funeral was attended by many leading political figures. He received eulogies from Governor Mario M. Cuomo of New York, Senator Gary Hart of

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, Senator Edward M. Kennedy of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, Senator

Christopher J. Dodd Christopher John Dodd (born May 27, 1944) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1981 to 2011. Dodd is the List of United Sta ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

and his best friend Ed R. Downe. Mr. Downe has led annual prayer services with Howard's family for 25 years (2009) in the Southampton, New York cemetery. Former New York governor Malcolm Wilson, once an opponent, remembered him as "a highly principled gentleman with a well-developed civic and social conscience." Cuomo said that Samuels was "a gentle, compassionate man ... (who) had the instincts, talents, and compassion to have been a great governor." "He was a better man and a visionary than a politician," stated journalist

Ken Auletta Kenneth B. Auletta (born April 23, 1942) is an American author, a political columnist for the New York Daily News, and media critic for ''The New Yorker''. Early life and education The son of an Italian American father and a Jewish American ...

, formerly Samuels' campaign manager.

References

External links

LBJ Presidential Library

Howard Samuels Center

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Samuels, Howard J. 1919 births 1984 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American politicians Administrators of the Small Business Administration American businesspeople in retailing American chief executives American energy industry businesspeople United States Army personnel of World War II American soccer chairmen and investors American sports executives and administrators Businesspeople in the casino industry MIT Sloan School of Management alumni New York (state) Democrats North American Soccer League (1968–1984) commissioners Politicians from New York City Politicians from Rochester, New York United States Army officers United States Department of Commerce officials United States Under Secretaries of Commerce