Sam Sniderman

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Sam Sniderman C.M. (born June 15, 1920) is a Canadian entrepreneur best known as the founder of Sam the Record Man, the Canadian record store chain.

Born in Toronto, Ontario, he went to Harbord Collegiate Institute and started selling records in his brother Sidney's store, Sniderman Radio Sales and Service, in 1937. In 1959 he opened a second store at his Yonge Street location in Toronto. In 1969, he started franchising the store.

He retired in 2000 and turned over ownership of the business to his sons, Bobby and Jason, and Sid's daughters Lana and Arna. The flagship Toronto store that bore his name closed in 2007 and its distinctive facade was declared a heritage site by the city.[1]

Following the closure, Sniderman expressed his support for Ryerson University's bid to expropriate the Yonge Street property if his children and nieces failed to negotiate a deal to sell the property to the university.[1] In the end, Ryerson reached a deal to purchase the property from the family. [2]

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[edit] Awards and honors

On October 20, 1976, he was invested into the Order of Canada. He was appointed to the Order's third tier, Member, for ""found[ing] the Recordings Archive Library at the University of Toronto, now the largest of its kind in Canada. For his constant support of Canadian talent and concern for the preservation of our cultural heritage". [3]

Sniderman was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 1997.

Sam Sniderman himself remains an active participant in the Canadian music industry. Always a believer in the "more is more" philosophy, he established the Sniderman Sound Recording Archive at the University of Toronto's School of Music, ensuring that it’s "as big as possible."

His son Jason Sniderman is a musician and was also an executive with Sam the Record Man.

Sniderman spoke at the 2006 East Coast Music Awards.


[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Girard, Daniel, "Ryerson ramps up plan to win Sam's site: Founder Sniderman backs expropriation bid to make his defunct store university's `front door', Toronto Star, July 3, 2007
  2. ^ Ryerson acquires Sam's property and three others (HTML). Ryerson University (2008-01-18). Retrieved on 2008-01-20.
  3. ^ Samuel Sniderman, C.M. (HTML). Honours: Order of Canada. Governor General of Canada (2005-09-27). Retrieved on 2007-05-30.

[edit] External links

[edit] Multmedia

[edit] Web

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