Vincent Sardi Jr. (July 23, 1915 – January 4, 2007) was an American restaurateur who owned and operated

Sardi's Sardi's is a continental restaurant located at 234 West 44th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, in the Theater District of Manhattan, New York City. Sardi's opened at its current location on March 5, 1927. It is known for the caric ...

restaurant, which was founded by his father Vincent Sardi Sr., for more than 50 years. He was dubbed as the "unofficial mayor of

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

" by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' due to the central presence of his restaurant in the world of

shows.

Biography

Sardi was born on July 23, 1915, in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

and spent his early childhood in a railroad flat on West 56th Street before moving to a brownstone at 246 West 44th Street, where his father, Vincent Sardi Sr., founded

restaurant. Sardi attended Holy Cross Academy and appeared in a Broadway play at the

Little Theatre As the new medium of cinema was beginning to replace theater as a source of large-scale spectacle, the Little Theatre Movement developed in the United States around 1912. The Little Theatre Movement served to provide experimental centers for the d ...

. The Sardi family moved to

Flushing, Queens Flushing is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Queens. The neighborhood is the fourth-largest central business district in New York City. Downtown Flushing is a major commercial ...

, and Sardi attended

Flushing High School Flushing High School is a four-year public high school in Flushing, in the New York City borough of Queens. The school is operated by the New York City Department of Education. As of the 2020–21 school year, the school had an enrollment of ...

. He entered Columbia College with the class of 1937 as a pre-medical student. However, Sardi failed the chemistry examination because he had sold his textbook at

Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 600 retail stores across the United States. Barnes & Noble operates mainly through its B ...

so he could attend a dance. He then transferred to

Columbia Business School Columbia Business School (CBS) is the business school of Columbia University, a Private university, private research university in New York City. Established in 1916, Columbia Business School is one of six Ivy League business schools and one of ...

after two years, graduating in 1937. In the meantime, Sardi worked at the family business and worked at the

Ritz-Carlton Hotel The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates the Hotel#Luxury, luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 conference and resort hotels, luxury hotels an ...

before rejoining Sardi's in 1939 as dining-room captain. Sardi joined the

Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

and was assigned to run the bachelor officers’ mess at the

Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point or MCAS Cherry Point (*) is a United States Marine Corps airfield located in Havelock, North Carolina, United States, in the eastern part of the state. It was built in 1941, and was commissioned in 1942 an ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

in 1942 and was sent to

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

. He left the Marines as captain. After serving in the military, he took over the restaurant when his father retired in 1947. He was known for extending lines of credit to unemployed Broadway actors and offered special menus with reduced prices to them. He also made sure to attend every show and insisted that his headwaiters do the same so that the actors would be well treated. He was president of the Greater Times Square Committee in the 1960s and the Restaurant League of New York in the 1970s, serving as official and unofficial spokesperson of Manhattan's

Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing a city's theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences ...

. He later opened a branch of the restaurant on East 54th Street and a dinner theater in

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

but neither turned out to be a success. In 1985, he sold the restaurant to a pair of producers Ivan Bloch and Harvey Klaris and restaurateur Stuart Lichtenstein. He regained ownership of the restaurant in 1991 and due to his failing health, turned the operation of the restaurant to his business partner Max Klimavicius. In 2004, Sardi received a Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre, an award also given to his father during the first year of the

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cere ...

in 1947.

Personal life

Sardi was an amateur sports car racer, polo player, and skier. He was nicknamed "Cino" by his father. Sardi was married three times, to Carolyn Euiller (1939–1946), Adelle Rasey, and June Keller. He died on January 4, 2007, at age 91 in

Berlin, Vermont Berlin ( ) is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States, founded in 1763. The population was 2,849 at the 2020 census. Being the town between Barre and Montpelier, the two largest cities in the region, much of the commercial busines ...

. He was a longtime resident of

Warren, Vermont Warren is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,977 at the 2020 census. The center of population of Vermont is located in Warren. It is set between the two ranges of the Green Mountains, with approximately 2 ...

at the time of his death. The marquee lights of all Broadway theaters were dimmed for one minute on January 5, 2007, in memory of Sardi.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sardi Jr., Vincent 1915 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 21st-century American businesspeople American restaurateurs Businesspeople from Manhattan Businesspeople from Queens, New York Businesspeople from Vermont Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia Business School alumni Flushing High School alumni People from Flushing, Queens People from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan People from Warren, Vermont Tony Award winners