Avron B. Fogelman (born March 1, 1940) is an American businessman and

real estate developer Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re- lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to othe ...

. He was a former part owner of the

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

's Kansas City Royals as well as several Memphis-based sports teams.Jim Masila
Fogelman boxes up spectacular sports memorabilia archive
Commercial Appeal, August 17, 2007 (Accessed November 9, 2009)

Early life

Fogelman was born to Morris and Mollye Fogelman, members of Memphis, Tennessee's Temple Israel. He attended Memphis City public schools and graduated from Central High School in 1958. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...

and earned an honorary law degree from the

University of Memphis School of Law The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law is an American Bar Association accredited law school and is the only law school in Memphis, Tennessee. The school has been associated with the University of Memphis since the law school's ...

. While a student at Tulane, Fogelman was a member of the

Zeta Beta Tau Zeta Beta Tau () is a Greek-letter social fraternity based in North America. It was founded on December 29, 1898. Originally a Zionist youth society, its purpose changed from Zionism in the fraternity's early years when in 1954 the fraternity be ...

fraternity.

Later life

He was a former part-owner of the Kansas City Royals from 1983 to 1991. He also owned the Memphis Chicks, a minor league baseball team, as well as the

Memphis Rogues The Memphis Rogues were a professional soccer team in the former North American Soccer League. They operated in the 1978, 1979, and 1980 seasons and played their home games in Memphis' Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. They also played indoor ...

, a professional soccer team, and the

Memphis Tams Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, an American Basketball Association team. He founded the University of Memphis' Fogelman Scholars Program. He helped fund extensive renovations to Tulane Gym, home of the Green Wave basketball team; the gym was renamed Avron B. Fogelman Arena in his honor.

Honors

In 1987, Fogelman received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Memphis. The southeastern leg of Interstate 240 is named the Avron Fogelman Expressway. The religious school at Temple Israel in Memphis is named the Wendy and Avron Fogelman Religious School in honor of Fogelman and his wife. In 2004, Fogelman was named "Tennessean of the Year" by the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

Philanthropy

In 2019, Fogelman donated his vast sports memorabilia collection, worth more than $10 million, to

Florida Atlantic University Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, and satellite campuses in Dania Beach, Davie, Fort Lauderdale, Jupiter, and Fort Pierce. FAU belongs to the 12-ca ...

(FAU). At the time, his gift marked the fifth-largest one-time donation to the university. The collection's 1,200 items are on display i
The Avron B. Fogelman Sports Museum
at FAU's Schmidt Family Complex for Academic and Athletic Excellence on the Boca Raton campus. Highlights of The Avron B. Fogelman Sports Museum collection include: * The 13 original rules of basketball by James Naismith * Babe Ruth’s pinstripe uniform pants worn on his first day as a New York Yankee in 1921 * Joe DiMaggio’s 1936 rookie uniform * Roger Maris’ uniform worn in 1961 when he broke the single season home run record * Hank Aaron’s uniform worn in 1974 when he broke the career home run record * 1985 Kansas City Royals World Series Trophy * Final cleats worn by football great Jim Thorpe * Football signed by the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins * The 1969 Ryder Cup Trophy * Baseballs signed by sports legends, entertainers, politicians and historical figures

References

Living people 1940 births People from Memphis, Tennessee American philanthropists North American Soccer League (1968–1984) executives 20th-century American businesspeople {{US-business-bio-1940s-stub