Leonard Tose
| Leonard Tose | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Leonard Hyman Tose March 6, 1915 Bridgeport, Pennsylvania |
| Died | April 15, 2003 (aged 88) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Occupation | Owner |
| Organization | Philadelphia Eagles (1969–1985) |
| Spouse(s) | Jayne Orenstein (divorced) Andrea Tose (divorced) Caroline Collum (divorced) Julia Farber (divorced) |
| Children |
with Orenstein: --Susan Tose Fletcher --Nan Tose Schwartz |
Leonard Hyman Tose (March 6, 1915 – April 15, 2003) was an owner of the Philadelphia Eagles from 1969–1985. He made a fortune in the trucking industry and was known for his lavish lifestyle. He eventually lost his fortune because of a gambling addiction and alcoholism.
Tose's father, a Russian Jewish immigrant to the United States, settled outside Philadelphia and was a peddler with a pack on his back. He eventually owned 10 trucks, the beginning of the family business. Eventually, Tose Inc. owned more than 700 trucks and grossed $20 million a year. Tose was born in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania and graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1937.
Tose, a lifelong fan of the Philadelphia Eagles, invested in the team as a member of the "Happy Hundred," a group led by James P. Clark. Tose invested $3,000 as one of the one hundred owners to purchase the team from Alexis Thompson on January 15, 1949. Tose tried to buy the team with his own group of investors in 1956, but was unable to do so. The team was bought in December 1963 by Jerry Wolman for $5,505,000 and Tose received more than $60,000. He bought the team from Wolman in 1969 for $16,155,000, then a record for a professional sports franchise. Tose's first official act was to fire head coach Joe Kuharich. He followed this by naming former Eagles receiving great Pete Retzlaff as general manager and Jerry Williams as coach.
In 1976, he, along with General Manager Jimmy Murray, lured Dick Vermeil from UCLA to coach the hapless Eagles, who had one winning season from 1962–1975. Vermeil's 1980 team lost to Oakland in the Super Bowl. In January 1983, Tose announced that his daughter, Susan Fletcher, the Eagles' vice president and legal counsel, would eventually succeed him as primary owner of the Eagles.
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