Bill Graham

popular name: Herman Armour

date_of_death: September 8, 1901

age: 64

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: At the young age of 18 Herman Armour left home and made his way to Milwaukee where he opened a butcher shop, eventually becoming Armour, Plankington & Co. With loads of ambition he left the business in charge of his partner, John Plankington, in 1862 and headed to Chicago where he established a grain commission business. Three years later he moved again, opening a branch office of Armour, Plankington & Co. (now a major pork packing business) in New York City. In 1868 Armour founded the commission house, H. O. Armour & Company, in New York City. By this time Herman's brother Philip oversaw the Midwestern packing business, renamed Armour & Co. in 1870. In 1875 that operation was moved to Chicago. With the death of his brother Philip in 1901, his son, J. Ogden Armour, took over the meatpacking business, hired thousands of African-American workers to break a union strike in 1904, and by 1923, as Armour Refrigerator Line was broken up for anti-trust violations, the business was at the brink of bankruptcy. After the younger Armour was fired, the company recovered and remained a major meatpacker for decades.

popular name: Sherman Billingsley

date_of_death: October 4, 1966

age: 70

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Sherman Billingsley was an American nightclub owner and former bootlegger who was the founder and owner of New York's Stork Club in Manhattan, New York City. For more than 36 years Billingsley played host, entertained and (in some cases) barred hundreds of social, political, business and theatrical personalities at the Stork Club, once dubbed "the New Yorkiest spot in town."

popular name: Walter Knott

date_of_death: December 3, 1981

age: 91

cause_of_death: Parkinson's disease

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Walter Knott was an American farmer who created the Knott's Berry Farm amusement park in California. In the 1920s, Walter Knott was a somewhat unsuccessful farmer, whose fortunes changed when he nursed several abandoned berry plants back to health. The hybrid boysenberry, named after its creator, Rudolph Boysen, was a cross between a blackberry, red raspberry and loganberry. The huge berries were a hit, and the Knott family sold berries, preserves and pies from a Buena Park, California roadside stand. In 1934, Knott's wife Cordelia (née Hornaday, January 23, 1890 – April 12, 1974) began serving fried chicken dinners, and within a few years, lines outside the restaurant were often several hours long. To entertain the waiting crowds, Walter built a Ghost Town in 1940, using buildings relocated from Old West towns. Even after Disneyland opened in 1955 a mere 8 miles away, Knott's Berry Farm continued to thrive. Walt Disney and Walter Knott are rumored to have had a cordial relationship; it is known that they each visited the other's park, and they were both members of the original planning council for Children's Hospital of Orange County. Early additions to the farm included a narrow gauge railroad, a San Francisco cable car, a Pan-for-Gold attraction, the Calico Mine Train dark ride and a log flume ride. In 1968, the Knott family fenced the farm, charged admission for the first time, and Knott's Berry Farm officially became an amusement park. Because of his interest in American pioneer history, Knott purchased and restored the real silver mining ghost town of Calico, California in 1951. As a child Walter spent a lot of time in Calico living with his uncle. During World War I he helped to build a silver mill in Calico. This period in his life influenced his decision to buy the town and restore it. In 1966, he deeded Calico to San Bernardino County, California. Walter remained active in the operation of Knott's Berry Farm until the death of Cordelia in 1974, leaving day-to-day park operations to his children.