Beame
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Abraham David Beame (''
The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
'' Birnbaum; March 20, 1906February 10, 2001) was an American accountant, investor, and Democratic Party politician who served from 1974 to 1977 as the 104th
mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...
. Beame presided over the city during the
1975 New York City fiscal crisis It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, when the city was almost forced to declare bankruptcy.


Early life

Beame was born Abraham David Birnbaum in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. His parents were Esther (née Goldfarb) and Philip Birnbaum, Jewish immigrants from Poland who fled
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
(then part of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
). Beame and his family left England when he was three months old. He was raised on New York City's
Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...
. Beame graduated from P.S. 160 and the High School of Commerce before enrolling at the
City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...
's School of Business and Civic Administration (spun off as
Baruch College Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in New York City, United States. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the colle ...
in 1968), where he received his undergraduate degree in business with honors in 1928.


Career


Career before politics

While in college, Beame co-founded an accounting firm, Beame & Greidinger. He was an accounting teacher at Richmond Hill High School in
Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
from 1929 to 1946 and also taught accounting and commercial law at
Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...
from 1944 to 1945. From 1952 to 1961, Beame served as New York City's director of the budget, having also served as assistant director from 1946 to 1952. In this capacity, he "negotiated all city labor contracts without a strike and kept books on city spending and borrowing; he also set up management programs that saved the city $40 million."


Early political career

Beame was a "clubhouse" or machine politician, a product of the
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
wing of the patronage-oriented "regular" Democratic organization, the borough's equivalent of Manhattan's
Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was an American political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789, as the Tammany Society. It became the main local ...
and the locus of New York patronage politics following the ascent of
Meade Esposito Amadeo Henry "Meade" Esposito (1907 – September 3, 1993) was an American politician who was a Brooklyn Democratic leader and political boss. Esposito served as chairman of the Kings County Democratic Committee from 1969 to 1984. As a leader, ...
, as opposed to the policy-oriented "reform" Democrats who entered New York City politics, most effectively in Manhattan and the Bronx in the 1950s. Before being elected to two nonconsecutive terms as city comptroller in 1961 and 1969, he was a longstanding member of Crown Heights's influential Madison Democratic Club and served as
political boss In the politics of the United States of America, a boss is a person who controls a faction or local branch of a political party. They do not necessarily hold public office themselves; most historical bosses did not, at least during the times of th ...
Irwin Steingut's personal accountant. Members of the Madison Club, including attorney/fundraiser Abraham "Bunny" Lindenbaum and Steingut's son,
Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
, frequently liaised with real estate developer
Fred Trump Frederick Christ Trump Sr. (October 11, 1905 – June 25, 1999) was an American real-estate developer and businessman. He was the father of the 45th and 47th U.S. president, Donald Trump. Born in the Bronx in New York City to Germans, German ...
. The club also played a decisive role in the political ascent of
Park Slope Park Slope is a neighborhood in South Brooklyn, New York City, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. Park Slope is roughly bounded by Prospect Park (Brooklyn), Prospect Park and Eighth Avenue (Brooklyn), Prospect Park West to the east, ...
–based attorney
Hugh Carey Hugh Leo Carey (April 11, 1919 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and attorney of the Democratic Party who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1961 to 1974 and as the 51st governor of New York from 1975 to 1982. Early ...
, whose tenure as
governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...
coincided with Beame's administration, though Carey eventually broke with the organization by endorsing
Mario Cuomo Mario Matthew Cuomo ( , ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...
's 1977 primary bid to unseat Beame. In 1965, Beame was the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City. Edward N. Costikyan was his campaign manager and
James Farley James Aloysius Farley (May 30, 1888 – June 9, 1976) was an American politician who simultaneously served as chairman of the New York State Democratic Committee, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and United States Postmaster Gener ...
his campaign chair. Despite having Senator
Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known as RFK, was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 64th United States attorney general from January 1961 to September 1964, and as a U.S. senator from New Yo ...
's strong support, Beame lost to the Republican nominee,
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, the mayor of New York City, and a candidate for U.S. president. He was also a regu ...
.


Mayor of New York City

Beame won the 1973 Democratic mayoral primary with 34% of the vote, ahead of
Herman Badillo Herman Badillo ( , ; August 21, 1929 – December 3, 2014) was an American lawyer and politician who served as borough president of The Bronx and United States Representative, and ran for Mayor of New York City. He was the first Puerto Rican e ...
(29%), Mario Biaggi (24%), and Albert H. Blumenthal (16%). He defeated State Senator John J. Marchi, Blumenthal, and Biaggi in the 1973 mayoral election, becoming the 104th mayor of New York City. Beame is usually considered the city's first Jewish mayor.


Fiscal crisis of 1975

Beame entered office facing the worst fiscal crisis in the city's history and spent most of his term attempting to ward off bankruptcy. Soon after being sworn in as mayor, Beame slashed the city workforce, froze salaries, and reconfigured the budget, which proved unsatisfactory until reinforced by actions from newly created state-sponsored entities and the granting of federal funds. In October 1975, the city of New York was in debt of $453 million. Beame made a statement on October 17 that the city had insufficient cash on hand to meet its debt obligations for that day. He added that New York City citizens needed to take immediate steps to protect the city's essential life support systems and to preserve their well-being. President
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
at first turned down New York's request for a loan, inspiring the legendary '' Daily News'' headline "Ford to City: Drop Dead", but Ford later approved federal support for New York.


Blackout of 1977

On the evening of July 13, 1977, a massive power failure hit the city. With temperatures in the mid-nineties Fahrenheit and the humidity high, New Yorkers sweltered. By the time power was restored at 10:39 p.m. the next night, the city had been without power for 25 hours. Beame set up a Blackout Action Center at the New York City Police Department headquarters. The blackout resulted in raw sewage washing up on beaches and spoiled food in hundreds or thousands of restaurants around the city. After a chaotic four years as mayor, Beame ran for a second term in 1977, and finished third in the Democratic
primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...
, behind Representative
Ed Koch Edward Irving Koch ( ; December 12, 1924February 1, 2013) was an American politician. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1969 to 1977 and was mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989. Koch was a lifelong Democrat who ...
and
New York Secretary of State The secretary of state of New York is a cabinet officer in the government of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York who leads the New York State Department of State, Department of State (NYSDOS). The current secretary of state of New York ...
Mario Cuomo Mario Matthew Cuomo ( , ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...
, and ahead of former Representative
Bella Abzug Bella Abzug (; née Savitzky; July 24, 1920 – March 31, 1998), nicknamed "Battling Bella", was an American lawyer, politician, social activist, and a leader in the women's movement. In 1971, Abzug joined other leading feminists such as Gloria ...
, Representative
Herman Badillo Herman Badillo ( , ; August 21, 1929 – December 3, 2014) was an American lawyer and politician who served as borough president of The Bronx and United States Representative, and ran for Mayor of New York City. He was the first Puerto Rican e ...
and Manhattan Borough President
Percy Sutton Percy Ellis Sutton (November 24, 1920 – December 26, 2009) was an American political and business leader. An activist in the Civil Rights Movement and lawyer, he was also a Freedom Rider and the legal representative for Malcolm X. He was ...
. He was succeeded by Koch, who won the general election on November 8, 1977. When Beame left office on January 1, 1978, the city budget had a surplus of $200 million. There was a $1.5 billion deficit when Beame took office. A 1993 survey of historians, political scientists and urban experts by Melvin G. Holli of the
University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...
ranked Beame as the 14th-worst American big-city mayor to serve between 1820 and 1993.


Later career

Beame worked in investment advising after leaving office.


Personal life

Beame was married to his childhood sweetheart, Mary (née Ingerman), for 67 years. They met when Beame was 15, playing checkers at the University Settlement Society of New York. They raised two sons, Edmond and Bernard (Buddy), and lived in Brooklyn, first in Crown Heights and later in a "modest" apartment on Plaza Street West in Park Slope. Throughout his life, Beame summered in the Rockaway neighborhood of Belle Harbor. Beame received the Townsend Harris medal in 1957, and awards from numerous charitable, religious and civic organizations. Beame experienced heart problems in his later years. He had heart attacks in 1991 and 2000. After the second, he was admitted to
New York University Medical Center NYU Langone Health is an integrated academic health system located in New York City, New York, United States. The health system consists of the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine, both part of New Y ...
, where he remained for the last months of his life. He underwent open-heart surgery in August and December 2000, and died from surgical complications on February 10, 2001, at the age of 94.


See also

*
La Guardia and Wagner Archives The La Guardia and Wagner Archives was established in 1982 at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, Queens, New York, to collect, preserve, and make available primary materials documenting the social and political history of New York Ci ...
* Timeline of New York City#1950s–1970s


Notes


References


Further reading

* Shelton, Jon. "Dropping Dead: Teachers, the New York City Fiscal Crisis, and Austerity" in Shelton, ''Teacher Strike! Public Education and the Making of a New American Political Order'' (U of Illinois Press, 2017) pp 114-142.


External links

* * (archived) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beame, Abraham 1906 births 2001 deaths 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century mayors of places in New York (state) American accountants American investors American people of Polish-Jewish descent Baruch College alumni Burials at New Montefiore Cemetery Businesspeople from New York City English emigrants to the United States English people of Polish-Jewish descent Jewish American people in New York City politics Jewish American mayors Mayors of New York City New York (state) Democrats New York City comptrollers People from Crown Heights, Brooklyn People from the Lower East Side People from the Upper East Side Rutgers University faculty