January 3 • 2019 23
jn

Th
 e Buddy’
s Pizza Legacy

William and Shirlee Jacobs bought Buddy’
s Pizza in 1970, 
when it was an established specialty restaurant on Six Mile 
and Conant in Detroit. Like so many customers, they enjoyed 
what became known as the Detroit-style square pizza.
Drawing customers and continuing as ownership changed 
was a Sicilian-based recipe originated by August “Gus” 
Guerra, who launched Buddy’
s in 1946 before selling to Jimmy 
Bonacorse and Jimmy Valenti in 1953.
While William “Billy” Jacobs concentrated on a realty 
business, son Robert took charge of management responsi-
bilities for Buddy’
s after finishing 
law school. 
“The great joy of the business 
has been bringing enjoyment to the 
people we serve,” Jacobs says. “I 
had great people working for me, 
and we were able to sponsor many 
community events as a team.”
Under Jacobs, CEO for 25 
years, the business thrived with 
expansion to 13 Buddy’
s restau-
rants in the metro area. The most 
recent opened at the Detroit Zoo 
last spring. 
Over its many years, Buddy’
s has been recognized by lead-
ing taste reviewers for serving high-quality menu choices. 
A partnership came in January 2018 with CapitalSpring, a 
private investment firm focused exclusively on the branded 
restaurant industry. The plan is to extend new store growth 
across the Midwest and beyond. 
“I now am a board member with one 
vote out of five,” Jacobs says. “We are 
hiring great people for growth while 
the food standards and processes 
are being maintained and 
improved.”

details

The Robert and Katherine Jacobs Asian Wing can be seen Tuesdays-
Fridays free of charge for Wayne, Oakland and Macomb County resi-
dents and DIA members. (313) 833-7900; dia.org.

administrators are taking. It’
s like a special kind 
of gathering place. I’
m a proponent of the docent 
program, which helps people looking at art learn 
about the history and culture associated with each 
piece on display.
”

EXPLORING THEMES
The Asian galleries, enlarged from 1,398 square 
feet to 6,900 square feet with a reassignment of 
space, have been designed to explore themes. In 
the area of Chinese painting, viewers can leave 
responses to the works they see in keeping with 
ages-old traditions. Korean works showcase the 
continuing ideal of harmony. Hindu sculptures 
demonstrate access to devotional beliefs.
Seven community members representing the 
cultures spotlighted, but not professionally asso-
ciated with the arts, were selected to collaborate 
with DIA staff in brainstorming ideas.
“There are about 140 pieces on view now; but, 
with rotation, we’
re going to be displaying more 
than 300 objects in these galleries over the course 
of time,
” says Katherine Kasdorf, DIA assistant 
curator of Arts of Asia & the Islamic World. “The 
objects we display are dependent on what we have 
in our collection.
“
Almost all of the paintings and textiles in the 
new galleries are light sensitive so we’
ll be chang-
ing works on display every six months. For every 
painting or textile seen in the galleries, we need to 
have eight lined up ready to go on display over the 
next few years and then we can go back to the first 
group. Visitors can return every few months and 
see completely new works of art.
”
One work donated by Robert and Katherine 
Jacobs and currently on view is a relief sculpture 
of Vishnu, the Hindu god, and is located in the 
Southeast Asia section. Made of beige sandstone 
in the 900s, it has smaller-scale figures carved in 
the stone framing it.
“It’
s a really wonderful, engaging sculpture, and 
we developed a special type of label, almost like 
a small book,
” says Kasdorf, who explains that 
beliefs associated with Vishnu have to do with 
preserving balance in the universe. “Visitors can 
page through to learn multiple layers of signifi-
cance pertaining to the piece.
”
As a visitor to the wing, Jacobs particularly 

relates to two other works. 
Yogini Goddess, a sculpture from southern India 
made in the 900s, combines imagery related to 
both auspicious and threatening qualities con-
nected to power. Head of Buddha, made of cast 
iron and dating back to the 800s, has a very serene 
expression communicating a sense of peace.
“While the Yogini is a sculpture that expresses 
movement, the Buddha is very still and calming,
” 
Jacobs says. “Both are beautifully carved and show 
artistic skills of high quality helping to train my 
eyes to appreciate great quality Asian art. “ 
Jacobs extends his multicultural interests by 
enjoying and supporting the array of movies 
shown by the Detroit Film Theatre at the DIA.
“The theater brings in movies that the conven-
tional, for-profit theaters do not show — whether 
specialty productions made in the United States 
or movies made in other countries,
” Jacobs says. 
“I’
m glad to see so many people enjoy the films as 
much as I do.
”
Jacobs, a member of Temple Shir Shalom, also 
supports diverse initiatives in the Jewish commu-
nity, a commitment carried down from his late 
parents, Shirlee and William Jacobs. She had a 
strong interest in Israeli causes, and he was 
a founder of the Michigan Jewish Sports 
Foundation.
Just as he followed his parents’
 inter-
ests, Jacobs hopes to pass along his 
interest in art to youngsters.
“Some of the school systems 
don’
t teach art in classrooms any-
more, and the DIA is taking their 
place,
” he says. “We sponsored a 
program where 1,900 teachers a 
year come to the DIA and learn 
the technique of Visual Thinking 
Strategies, an approach to asking 
questions about what is seen and felt 
when experiencing art. 
“That’
s a great way of spending 
money efficiently because the 
teachers carry these ideas back 
to classrooms to instill critical 
thinking skills.
”

across the Midwest and beyond.

“I now am a board member with one
vote out of five,” Jacobs says. “We ar
hiring great people for growth while

the food standards and processes

are being maintained and

improved.”

-
-

mber of Temple Shir Shalom, also
e initiatives in the Jewish commu-
ment carried down from his late 

and William Jacobs. She had a 
n Israeli causes, and he was
e Michigan Jewish Sports 

owed his parents’
 inter-

es to pass along his 
o youngsters.
school systems
n classrooms any-
DIA is taking their 
“We sponsored a 
1,900 teachers a 
e DIA and learn 
f Visual Thinking 
pproach to asking 
t what is seen and felt 
cing art. 
at way of spending 
tly because the 
hese ideas back 
o instill critical 

Manuscript of the ‘
Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Verses’
 (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita), about 1160, Scribe: Shri 

Dharaka of Ghoshaligrama; painter: Unknown Artist India (Bihar), ink and opaque watercolor on palm leaves.

Vasudhara, 

Goddess of Wealth 

and Abundance, 

1100s, Nepal, 

copper, gold, gem 

stones.

Billy Jacobs, circa 1950, with 

his young son Robert.

