Joseph Silver (1868-1918) also known as the "King of Pimps", was a man who terrorized women in Johannesburg, South Africa during the late 19th century and early 20th century.
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His original Polish name "Lis" means "Fox". His alias "Silver", was a reference to his mother, whose maiden name was Kweksylber, which means Quicksilver. He was also known as Joe Liss, Joe Eligmann, James Smith, Joseph Schmidt, Charlie Silver, Charles Greenbaum, Abraham Ramer and Ludwig.[1]
He was born in 1868 in Kielce, Poland[1]into a Jewish family, as a one of nine children of tailor and petty criminal, Ansel Lis.
According to the book giving an account of his crimes, The Fox and the Flies, Silver began his criminal career in London. He later committed a string of petty offenses in New York before heading to South Africa and South America.
In 2007, South African historian Charles van Onselen claimed in the book The Fox and The Flies: The World of Joseph Silver, Racketeer and Psychopath that Silver was the infamous Jack the Ripper serial killer in London in 1888. [2] Critics note, among other things, that Onselen provides no evidence that Silver was even in London during the time of the murders and that the accusation is based entirely upon speculation. Onselen has responded that the number of circumstances involved should make Silver a suspect. [3]. He would have been 20 at the time.