Marcel Adams (2 August 1920 – 11 August 2020)[1] was a Canadian real estate investor, billionaire, and Holocaust survivor.[2]
Marcel Adams | |
|---|---|
| Born | Marcel Abramovich 2 August 1920 Piatra Neamț, Romania |
| Died | 11 August 2020 (aged 100) Montreal, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian/Romanian/Israeli |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Founder of Iberville Developments |
| Spouse |
Annie Adams
(m. 1953; died 1997) |
| Children | 4, including Sylvan Adams |
Biography
editMarcel Abramovich (later Adams) was born to a Jewish family in Romania in 1920.[2] His father was a tanner.[3] During World War II he was forced to work in Nazi labor camps (1941-1944).[4] He escaped and fled first to Turkey and then to Mandatory Palestine where he fought for the independence of Israel.[3] In 1951, he immigrated to Canada where he worked at a Quebec City tannery.[5] In 1955, he began investing in real estate making a 70% profit on his first building.[3] In 1958, he founded Iberville Developments[2] and in 1959, he opened his first mall.[3] Adams retired and his son, Sylvan Adams, operated the company for almost 25 years,[6] before being succeeded by his own son, Josh.[2][7] As of 2017, Iberville owns and manages a diverse portfolio of over 100 properties consisting of eight million square feet.[2]
Personal life
editIn 1953, he married Annie Adams; they had four children: Julian, Sylvan, Linda, and Leora.[3] His son Julian is a biochemist who led a team that developed the drug Velcade; his son Sylvan ran Iberville;[3] his daughter Linda is a lawyer married to commentator Gil Troy; and his daughter Leora is a nurse.[3] Annie died in November 1997.[8]
Adams died on August 11, 2020.[9]
References
edit- ^ Florin Jbanca (18 February 2015). "Extraordinara poveste a românului cu 800 de milioane de dolari ascunse în Elveţia. Traseul de la evreul sărac Meir Abramovici la miliardarul Marcel Adams" (in Romanian). piatra neamt.
- ^ a b c d e Forbes: The World's Billionaires - Marcel Adams April 2017
- ^ a b c d e f g The Press Reader: "Billionaire Marcel Adams Cultivates Israeli Brainpower" May 2, 2010
- ^ Financial Post: "93-year-old Canadian real estate mogul makes Forbes billionaires list for first time" by Nicolas Van Praet March 4, 2013
- ^ Canadian Business: "Canada's Richest People 2017 - Marcel Adams" Archived 2021-09-23 at the Wayback Machine 2017
- ^ Cashman, Greer Fay (March 3, 2019). "35. Sylvan Adams". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
- ^ Immobilier Commercial" "SYLVAN ADAMS en tête de peloton" volume 7 - numéro 6 - December 7, 2014
- ^ "Paid Notice: Deaths ADAMS, ANNIE". The New York Times. November 14, 1997 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ Gil Troy (August 12, 2020). "Marcel Adams passes away after a hundred years of loving Israel and life". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
Further reading
edit- Guy Mercier, Frédérik Leclerq, François Roy, Marcel Adams à Quebec. Les destins croisés d'un homme et d'une ville, en Pierre Anctil, Simon Jacobs dir.: Les Juifs de Québec. Quatre cents ans d’histoire. Presses de l'Université du Québec PUQ, Québec 2015, pp 195 – 220 (French)