“Dear Sam:
I appreciate very much the interest you have shown in our success. . . .
Yours very sincerely,Franklin D. Roosevelt”
“Dear Sam:
… I also appreciate the good work you have done in New Jersey. . . .
With kind personal regards,
James A. Farley”
Armed with letters like these praising his work in the 1932 campaign, and described as a New Jersey real-estate operator, one Samuel W. (“Big Sam”) Silverman recently opened offices in Manhattan as the National Association of Roosevelt for 1940 Clubs, Inc., began soliciting contributions. Making an official disclaimer for the Democratic National Committee, canny old Publicity Director Charles Michelson cryptically observed: “Purely an individual enterprise, similar to some of Mr. Silverman’s projects of the past.”
Prying newshawks last week reported that Samuel Silverman, about to open Washington offices, had a police record extending back to 1913, cited twelve arrests for offenses ranging from assault & battery to bootlegging, a 360-day jail term in 1936 for a bond deal.
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