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years, shuttling between Baltimore
and Detroit. (One of the perks was
that, returning home for Shabbat
during the winter months, Baltimore
looked like Honolulu to me.)
I got to learn about the history,
depth and activism of the Detroit
Jewish community, with its national
reputation for major leadership, and
to meet, interact with and admire
some of those leaders, both lay and
professional, who welcomed me with
warmth and hospitality. They included
Stanley Frankel, Wayne Feinstein,
Marty Kraar, Jane Sherman and the
irrepressible David Hermelin.
I once saw Hermelin dare a State
Department spokesman to partici-
pate in a round of Simon Says during
a Washington briefing for a Detroit
mission visiting Foggy Bottom. The
poor man in the three-piece suit froze
on the stage, not knowing whether
to ignore Hermelin or jump when he
heard, “Simon says jump.”
I also had the chance to spend time
with Philip Slomovitz, the founding
editor and soul of the Jewish News,
who, though up in years and blind,
came to the office regularly and had a
faithful friend, Percy Kaplan, read to
him from a number of daily newspa-
pers.
I once asked Mr. Slomovitz if he
recalled the legendary episode of
Tigers’ slugger Hank Greenberg
attending synagogue on Rosh
Hashanah before heading off to an
important game at season’s end, circa
1938.
Mr. Slomovitz not only remem-
bered, but was at Congregation
Shaarey Zedek that morning and
witnessed the scene as the rabbi
stopped the service to wish Greenberg
well. (His blessing must have worked;
Greenberg responded by hitting a
home run to win the game that day,
1-0.)
I have many fond memories of
the staff of the Jewish News and the
excellent work they produced, most
notably my friends and colleagues
Phil Jacobs, who edited the paper with
heart and soul, and Arthur Horwitz,
whose vision and commitment helped
sustain it in tough years and see it
grow in good times.
I salute all those who worked
for and with the Jewish News from
the beginning until today, and that
includes the community that has
read and supported its efforts. There
has never been a more vital time for
a respected Jewish media company
to educate, enlighten and inspire its
readers. Here’s to the next 75 years.
Mazel tov to all.
Where he is now: Gary Rosenblatt
has been editor and publisher of The
Jewish Week of New York since the
summer of 1993.

DANNY SAMSON:
Account Executive
Working at the
Jewish News was
my first job after
spending a year in
Israel on a volunteer
program (Project
Otzma) after college.
I have great memo-
ries as far back as the initial interview,
when Arthur Horwitz said to me, “You
don’t really have any of the experience
we’re looking for but because you just
completed Project Otzma, a challeng-
ing program with which I am familiar,
I know that you will do well in this
position.”
I was an account executive from
approximately 1994-1996 and enjoyed
the position very much. The JN team
was exceptional, and I have great
memories of listening to classic sto-
ries from Danny Raskin and learning
strong work ethics and sales strate-
gies from Arthur Horwitz and Rick
Nessel. I greatly enjoyed meeting with
the multitude of business owners and
personalities who would advertise in
the paper and always enjoyed the fast-
paced work environment.
I subsequently went to Wayne State
University for a master’s degree in
urban planning and fell in love with
Detroit real estate. I regularly and
fondly look back on the time I spent
at the Jewish News and am grateful for
the lessons I learned and the remark-
able people with whom I had the
privilege to work.
Where he is now: Danny Samson
and his wife have five children. He has
spent 14 years as chief development
officer at Sterling Group, a Downtown
Detroit-based commercial real estate
and development company.

CARLA JEAN
SCHWARTZ:
Columnist/
Special Sections
Editor/Style
Magazine Editor/
JN Style Editor
I worked at the JN
for more than two
decades. I began
as a freelance writer (1983-1985)
covering fashion shows and social
events, where I came into the news-
room and actually worked on a
typewriter. When I was hired (1985-
2007), computers had floppy disk
drives, and there was neither social
media nor internet. The newsroom
was bustling with a sense of com-
raderie between my colleagues and
the Jewish community. Like many
ethnic newspapers, the JN was the
epicenter of the community.
For me personally, I interviewed

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