Jake Kozloff (1901–1976) was a Russian-born American businessman. He was the owner of the Lebanon Valley Brewing Company in

Lebanon, Pennsylvania Lebanon ( ; ) is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,814 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Lebanon was founded by George Steitz in 1740 and was originally named ...

, in the 1930s. He invested in hotels and casinos in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, in the 1940s and 1950s, where he was also the president of Temple Beth Sholom. He went on to invest in hotels and casinos in the Caribbean in the 1960s.

Early life

Jacob Kozloff was born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

in 1901. He emigrated to the United States in 1905, settling in

Reading, Pennsylvania Reading ( ; ) is a city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 95,112 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fourth-most populous ...

Career

Kozloff served as the owner, president and treasurer of the Lebanon Valley Brewing Company on North Seventh Street in

, from 1933 onwards. He remained its owner until the late 1940s, when he sold it. Golden Nugget Las Vegas

Kozloff moved to

, in the late 1940s, where he invested in casinos. He first invested in the Thunderbird Hotel (alongside Joe Wells, Jack Lane,

Guy McAfee Guy Alexander McAfee (August 19, 1888 – February 20, 1960) was an American law enforcement officer and businessman. Born in Kansas and orphaned in early childhood, he became a firefighter in Los Angeles, California, and later served as the head ...

), and served as a manager. With

and Beldon Katleman, Kozloff acquired the

Frontier Hotel The New Frontier (formerly Hotel Last Frontier and The Frontier) was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The property began as a casino and dance club known as Pair O' Dice, opened in 1931. It was sold in 1941, and inc ...

from Bill Moore for US$5.5 million in 1951. Kozloff served as its manager from 1951 to 1955. In 1955, when he paid US$100,000 for

Mario Lanza Mario Lanza ( , ; born Alfredo Arnold Cocozza ; January 31, 1921 – October 7, 1959) was an American tenor and actor. He was a Hollywood film star popular in the late 1940s and the 1950s. Lanza began studying to be a professional singer a ...

to perform for two weeks at the casino, Kozloff bragged that it was the highest salary an entertainer had ever received in a Las Vegas casino. When he stepped down, Kozloff was succeeded by Beldon Katleman. Kozloff subsequently invested in the Golden Nugget and again served as its manager. In 1956, Kozloff signed a 20-year lease of the

Royal Nevada Royal Nevada was a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It was owned by Frank Fishman, who leased it to various individuals during its brief history. The resort was designed by Paul Revere Williams, and construct ...

hotel in Las Vegas with conductor

Phil Spitalny Phil Spitalny (November 7, 1890 – October 11, 1970) was a Russian-born American musician, music critic, composer, and bandleader heard often on radio during the 1930s and 1940s. He rose to fame after he led an all-female orchestra, a novelty at ...

from Frank Fishman. In June 1957, he became the manager of the Thunderbird Hotel once again. Meanwhile, the gambling application for the

Hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...

, a hotel in

Paradise, Nevada Paradise is an Unincorporated towns in Nevada, unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the ...

, was delayed by Robbins E. Cahill, the founding chairman of the

Nevada Gaming Control Board The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB or SGCB), also known as the State Gaming Control Board, is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of gaming and law enforcement of Nevada gaming laws throughout the state, along with th ...

, in 1956, partly because Kozloff, who had invested US$250,000 in cash for a return of 12.5%, was turned down for a gaming license. The casino had 32 other investors. However, by 1958, Kozloff was the main investor in the Hacienda, another casino in

. Kozloff and Clifford A. Jones were majority shareholders of the Grand Antilles Casino in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

in 1958. In 1964, they invested in casinos operated by the

InterContinental Hotels Group InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), marketed as IHG Hotels & Resorts, is a British multinational hospitality company headquartered in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. It ...

in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

. Three years later, in 1967, Kozloff was the manager of the Aruba Caribbean Casino in

Aruba Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná Peninsula, Paraguaná and northwest of Curaçao. In 19 ...

Judaism

Kozloff served as the chair of the

United Jewish Appeal The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), formerly the United Jewish Communities (UJC), is an American Jewish umbrella organization for the Jewish Federations system, representing over 350 independent Jewish communities across North Ameri ...

in 1951. He subsequently served as the president of Temple Beth Sholom in Las Vegas, Nevada from 1951 to 1953.

Death

Kozloff died on April 22, 1976, in

. He was 76 years old. He was buried at the

Kesher Zion Kesher Zion is a Conservative Jewish congregation and synagogue located 555 Warwick Drive, Wyomissing in Reading, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (Un ...

Cemetery in

Shillington, Pennsylvania Shillington is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 5,475 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the borough is nestled amongst other suburbs outside Reading, Penn ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kozloff, Jake 1901 births 1976 deaths Businesspeople from Las Vegas American casino industry businesspeople Russian Jews American people of Russian-Jewish descent 20th-century American businesspeople Russian businesspeople in the United States Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States