Richard Louis Gold

Richard Gold was born on December 19, 1925 in Milwaukee, WI, the younger of two sons. His father was a lawyer.

He graduated from Milwaukee Country Day School (now the University School of Milwaukee) in 1943 and enlisted in the Army on February 21, 1944. He was assigned to the 3133 Signal Service Company, and went to Italy with the unit in 1945. Later he was named feature editor of Stars and Stripes in Italy; his Boston Globe obituary reports that he was stationed in Rome and that "he was present for the reopening of La Scala opera house after the end of the war."

The Stars and Stripes in Italy was discontinued with the June 2, 1946 edition and Staff Sgt. Gold flew back to the states. He filled out his draft card on July 1, 1946.

That fall he matriculated at Yale, graduating in 1949. He then went on to Harvard Law School, graduating cum laude in 1952 and marrying Dorothy Ruth Lasker of Brockton MA at the beginning of his last year of law school.

Richard and Dorothy headed off to New York City after graduation, where Richard practiced law for 10 years, seven of those as a partner. He and Dorothy became the parents of a son, Thomas, in 1957.

But, according to his Boston Globe obituary, he was "not fully satisfied with the transactional nature of legal practice," and in 1963 purchased Independent Nail Company, a maker of specialty nails (for construction) located in Bridgewater, MA. While he continued to practice law for the rest of his life, and to serve as an advisor to individuals and corporations, his career path became more entrepreneurial.

He sold Independent Nail in 1968, and for the rest of his career owned and operated a wide variety of enterprises including Thomson General Corp., a manufacturer of resistance electric welding equipment. In 1971 he purchased Acme Staple Company, a maker of specialty fasteners and fastening equipment located in Franklin, NH. He was also president of Lincoln Warehouse in Milwaukee, a warehousing and real estate operation started by his father in the 1920s.

At some point he and Dorothy divorced, and he married Phyllis Kraft in 1969. They settled in Weston, MA where their property included a small cottage which they winterized in order to rent out. The young man who showed up to rent it in 1971 was Dave Cowens, a then unknown rookie with the Boston Celtics. (He would go on to become a Hall of Famer.) He lived in that cottage for six years, and over that time Richard became his lawyer, advisor, agent, and business manager and later the attorney for other members of the team. According to his obituary, "throughout Dave's career Richard attended each home game, and often traveled with the team. He assisted Dave with the formation of the Dave Cowens Basketball Camp and the launch of The Sports Museum of New England." The Sports Museum is housed at TD Garden, where the Celtics play. Richard received an award from the museum in 2012 for his long and meritorious service to the New England sports community.

Richard's son Tom joined him in his businesses and law practice in 1988. Richard and Phyllis divorced in 2015.

HIs obituary goes on to say that Richard "worked full time, six days a week, until the last month of his life. From the early 1960s onward, he traveled extensively throughout North America, Europe, and East Asia, meeting with clients, customers, and suppliers, with whom he often formed close personal relationships. He loved the island of Lana'i, where he vacationed each year for 26 straight years."

Richard died on April 18, 2019 and is buried at Linwood Cemetery in Weston, MA.

Sources

1930 census
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/58674449:6224?tid=&pid=&queryId=c17479cd-d080-4043-85f0-546f68216f76&_phsrc=ayQ13&_phstart=successSource

1943 Milwaukee Country Day School yearbook (includes photo)
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/182660670:1265?tid=&pid=&queryId=b52b0f18-9c5e-4089-929c-02e7e30bdf6b&_phsrc=eOI3&_phstart=successSource

1944 enlistment record
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/5406237:8939?tid=&pid=&queryId=51033d25-ac5c-4311-9aef-a52ff5062da8&_phsrc=ayQ15&_phstart=successSource

1946 article in the Milwaukee Journal (WI) about his work with Stars & Stripes
https://www.genealogybank.com/doc/newspapers/image/v2%3A1477BBDEA50EB75C%40GB3NEWS-15A7F224403EF4D8%402431975-15A7E8C8B0365915%4018-15A7E8C8B0365915%40?h=5&fname=richard%20l&lname=gold&fullname=&rgfromDate=1935&rgtoDate=1952&formDate=&formDateFlex=exact&dateType=range&kwinc=&kwexc=&sid=emcmvsxrmsjjogxcsmlmmoxjzlqgmmfu_ip-10-166-46-102_1721957766226

1946 draft card (filled out after the war)
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/198857920:2238?tid=&pid=&queryId=8313c069-87f5-42ca-978b-fa7a54d4dd28&_phsrc=ayQ2&_phstart=successSource

1950 census
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/158366239:62308?tid=&pid=&queryId=2eed0234-dc38-48dd-86f9-36941048bdfd&_phsrc=ayQ17&_phstart=successSource

1951 marriage announcement in the Boston Globe (MA)
https://www.newspapers.com/image/433526926/?match=1&terms=richard%20l%20gold

1951 article in the Milwaukee Sentinel (WI) about his Harvard Law experience
https://www.genealogybank.com/doc/newspapers/image/v2%3A119BAA7547AD9B50%40GB3NEWS-16EFB8A75CFC6CA6%402433940-16EFB46CF4AF21C9%402-16EFB46CF4AF21C9%40?h=6&fname=richard%20l&lname=gold&fullname=&rgfromDate=1935&rgtoDate=1952&formDate=&formDateFlex=exact&dateType=range&kwinc=&kwexc=&sid=emcmvsxrmsjjogxcsmlmmoxjzlqgmmfu_ip-10-166-46-102_1721957766226

1952 Harvard Law School yearbook (includes photo)
https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/243382696:1265?tid=&pid=&queryId=1167351e-9f14-4753-9c42-bc04e2356be8&_phsrc=ayQ7&_phstart=successSource

1976 article in the New York Times about Dave Cowens, heavily quoting from Richard Gold
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1976/11/14/94192533.html?pageNumber=193

1980 article in the Boston Globe (MA) about his company's acquisition of another company
https://www.newspapers.com/image/428362886/?match=1&terms=richard%20l.%20gold

2019 Boston Globe (MA) obituary (includes photo)
https://www.newspapers.com/image/556418977/?match=1&terms=richard%20l.%20gold

2019 Find a Grave record (includes Boston Globe obituary)
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/257540092/richard-louis-gold