Tommy Van Scoy (March 22, 1920 – June 9, 2005) was the owner of a chain of diamond

jewelry Jewellery (or jewelry in American English) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment such as brooches, ring (jewellery), rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the ...

stores along in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

and the

Mid-Atlantic States The Mid-Atlantic is a region of the United States located in the overlap between the nation's Northeastern and Southeastern states. Traditional definitions include seven U.S. states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virg ...

. He was also known for his odd

radio commercials In the United States, commercial radio stations make most of their revenue by selling airtime to be used for running radio advertisements. These advertisements are the result of a business or a service providing a valuable consideration, usually ...

for his jewelry stores. He was also a championship

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

and an amateur pilot.

Biography

Van Scoy was born March 22, 1920, in Bear Creek, Pennsylvania. His mother died when he was 8 years old. In the 1930s his father a, former

steelworker Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high elastic modulus, yield strength, fracture strength and low raw material cost, steel is one of the m ...

, had a difficult time finding work during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. Young Van Scoy graduated from Coughlin High School and made money as a newspaper boy and as a

shoeshiner Shoeshiner or boot polisher is an occupation in which a person cleans and buffs shoes and then applies shoe polish, a waxy paste to give a shiny appearance and a protective coating. They are often known as shoeshine boys because the job was tr ...

. Van Scoy was a

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves of America is an organization that promotes annual competitions of amateur boxing in the United States, in which winners are awarded a belt and a ring, and the title of national champion. The organization currently owns 30 fr ...

boxer. In 1942 he joined the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

, where the flip of a coin ignited a new interest. "While I was in the army, I went to

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

. I with two other officers and we flipped a coin to see who would pay for the movie. I lost and the coin landed on the crystal of my watch and broke it." He took the watch to a repair shop, and when the jeweler learned he was interested in the inner workings of the timepiece, the jeweler taught Van Scoy how to fix a watch. After returning home from the military in 1945, he rented a second floor retail space in

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( , alternatively or ) is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It ...

and opened his first jewelry store. Several years later he decided he could make more money selling

diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of electricity, and insol ...

exclusively. He often said: "I sell the same or better diamond for less!" In the early 1980s, Van Scoy became known in New England and the Mid-Atlantic States for his halting testimonials in radio commercials for the "Van Scoy Diamond Mine." He also sponsored a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race known as the ''

Van Scoy Diamond Mine 500 The Great American Getaway 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series race held at Pocono Raceway since 1974 NASCAR Winston Cup Series, 1974, the race is currently held as a 160 lap, 400 mile (643.738 km) race. From 1982 to 2021, a second race at the track (las ...

'' (now known as the ''Pocono 400''). The final race of the sponsorship was in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

with

Bill Elliott William Clyde Elliott Sr. (born October 8, 1955), also known as "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville", "Million Dollar Bill", or "Wild Bill" is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the Superstar Racing Experienc ...

winning the race. His commercials sometimes included this jingle: ''I'm a lucky girl,'' ''hoo-ray, oh boy!'' ''Look at my diamond,'' ''it came from Van Scoy.'' ''My boyfriend bought it,'' ''saved lots of money too.'' ''Van Scoy's the diamond king,'' ''yes, he's the man for you!'' When Van Scoy

retired Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

in 1993, he left seven jewelry stores to his children. Through

franchising Franchising is based on a marketing concept which can be adopted by an organization as a strategy for business expansion. Where implemented, a franchisor licenses some or all of its know-how, procedures, intellectual property, use of its busines ...

, Van Scoy lent his name to forty additional stores in the northeastern United States including shops in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

;

Binghamton, New York Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the c ...

;

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

; and

West Springfield, Massachusetts West Springfield is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 28,835 at the 2020 United States Census. The city is also known as "West ...

"When I walk into a town, I don’t have to depend on luck," Van Scoy once said. "I’ve arranged it and planned it logically. I’ll go in and sell more diamonds in one day than all the other jewelers in town have in a week."

Personal life

Van Scoy had seven children with his wife Elizabeth Richards. He died on June 9, 2005 at 85 of a heart condition.https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/122763258/thomas-a-van_scoy

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scoy, Tommy Van Van Scoy 1920 births 2005 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II