Fencing coach at Case Western Reserve University, head fencing coach for the Cleveland Division of Recreation and a charter member of the U.S. Academy of Arms, he was responsible for the development of numerous fencing programs in the city. Was selected as a coach of the U.S. Pan-American team in 1971 and coached in the […]
Director of the Cleveland Athletic Club for nearly five years and a leading figure in AAU activities. Served as chairman of the National AAU Boxing Committee and was a member, manager or chairman of several U.S. Olympic Boxing Teams. The Jimmy Lee Foundation now provides college scholarships for deserving Cleveland high school athletes annually.
Organizer, first president (1941-42) and director (1942-55) of the Greater Cleveland Knights of Columbus Track Meet, he played a major role in making the meet one of the top indoor track and field meets in the country. Served as president of the Northeastern Ohio AAU in 1945-46, was a member of the National AAU Board […]
Owner of the Cleveland professional hockey club, known chronologically as the Indians, Falcons and Barons during his ownership from 1930 until 1949. He built the Cleveland Arena in 1937, a building which remained a show place for indoor sports in Cleveland for more than 35 years. Interested and actively involved in many other sports, he […]
Served as Fenn College’s first and only athletic director from the inception of intercollegiate athletics at the school in 1929 until it became Cleveland State University in 1965, then stayed on CSU’s first athletic director for an additional year, a total of 37 years of service to the school in all. Coached basketball, baseball, track, […]
Treasurer of the Cleveland Baseball Federation for over 50 years, he was responsible for raising hundreds of thousands of dollars to equip youngsters to play sandlot baseball in Cleveland and to cover their medical expenses. His promotion of the annual Sandlot Day exhibition baseball game played annually by the Cleveland Indians beginning in 1948 was […]
A prominent supporter of amateur athletics in Cleveland, he was president of Favorite Knits Sporting Goods, a company which sponsored numerous teams in various sports. Organized the first Jewish Softball League in 1932, which later developed into the Jewish Recreation Council. Served as the first Amateur Softball Association commissioner in Greater Cleveland in 1935 and […]
Creator of a scholarship fund in 1940 which quickly grew into the Cleveland District Golf Association Caddie Foundation. Served as chairman of that Foundation for its first 32 years, during which time college scholarships worth over $378,000 were awarded to 314 boys. Served as president of the Cleveland District Golf Association in 1941 and was […]
Cleveland’s Commissioner of Recreation since 1947, he developed a broad program of recreation for its citizens which has served as a model for many of the nation’s large cities. Instituted a program of competitive sports for girls in the 1950s, which was a national first. It was through this program that Madeline Manning Jackson began […]
Active in the sports of swimming and diving and in the field of water safety for over 40 years, he founded numerous committees and associations involved with water sports competition. Was chairman of the Lake Erie Association Swimming Committee Board of Managers, from 1954 to 1974, president of the Lake Erie Association AAU in 1967-68, […]