- Hermann Merkin
Hermann Merkin (born 1907 in
Leipzig, Germany - diedMarch 9 ,1999 inNew York City ) was a Jewish-American businessman and, with his wifeUrsula Merkin , aphilanthropist . He is the father of writerDaphne Merkin .Merkin's family fled Germany to escape
Nazi persecution and came to New York City in 1940. Soon after coming to the United States, Merkin joined the Army as an intelligence and counterintelligence officer. After the war he purchased a seat on theNew York Stock Exchange , and founded Merkin & Company, an investment firm. Although he was known to many people in that capacity, the actual bulk of his fortune came from his ownership of a significant portion ofOverseas Shipholding Group , which owns and manages a large fleet of transatlantic Oil Tankers. Consequently, he was actually not so much an investment manager, as a shipping magnate.Merkin was, for a period, a good friend of
Herman Wouk and the two were very involved in the founding of [http://www.5as.org/ Fifth Avenue Synagogue] inManhattan . He had sixchildren , three sons and three daughters, and at his death had 20 grandchildren. He and his wife "Ulla" sponsored the well-knownMerkin Concert Hall inNew York City and also gave generously toMount Sinai Hospital ,Yeshiva University , [http://info.jpost.com/1999/Supplements/Charity/reut.html Re'ut] and manyJewish charities; they were particularly interested in furthering Jewish education through philanthropic gifts.Hermann met and married his WifeUrsula Merkin (maiden name Breuer) in 1950 inNew York .Merkin was a religious man, and regularly attended ashiur until he was unable to do so. He was very active in his synagogue.Merkin died at age 91 of
congestive heart failure .Sources
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940CE0DE1F3FF933A25750C0A96F958260 Merkin's death notices] at the "
New York Times "
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E3DE163EF932A25750C0A96F958260&scp=3&sq=hermann%20merkin&st=cse Merkin's obituary] at the "New York Times"
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