14 | MARCH 12 • 2020 

A

fter 35 years, Howard Handler 
has returned to Detroit. His 
family has made an impact 
here for generations. Now it’
s his turn 
to make his mark as the first official 
president of 313 Presents, which man-
ages entertainment operations for a 
range of Detroit-area venues, including 
Little Caesars Arena, the Fox Theatre 
and DTE Energy Music Theatre.
Raised in suburban Detroit, Handler 
is no newcomer to many of these ven-
ues. His family lived on Pontchartrain 
Drive in Southfield, not far from 
Southfield-Lathrup High School (he 
was Class of 1979) and Congregation 
Shaarey Zedek, where he became a bar 
mitzvah. He earned undergraduate 
and M.B.A. degrees at the University 
of Michigan, but before that, he was a 
regular at Detroit-area music venues. 
 “My mom (Marlene) took me and 
my best friend, Neil Spector, to see 
The Wiz when it opened in Detroit,
” 
he said. “I have memories of shows at 
Cobo and Olympia and Pine Knob. 
And those experiences led to a lifelong 
love of music, theater, and live enter-

tainment.
” 
His oldest sister, Missy, introduced 
him and their sister Meg to the 
Beatles, Elvis and Aretha Franklin, 
and she helped him get an early job as 
a security Ranger at Pine Knob (now 
DTE Energy Music Theatre).
“That was a big deal,
” Handler said. 
In tandem with his love of entertain-
ment, Handler’
s attachment to Detroit 
also is tied deeply to family history.
His great-grandfather Charles 
Handler moved to Detroit shortly after 
World War I. He and his wife, Millie, 
both originally from from Bialystok, 
Poland, moved here from Newark 
when Charlie saw an opportunity to 
sell coal in Michigan. 
Within a generation, their son Max, 
Howard Handler’
s grandfather, would 
become a noted businessman and 
philanthropist. 
In an April 17, 1947, photo found in 
the Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish 
Detroit History, Max is shown at an 
emergency campaign event to help the 
1.5 million liberated Jews in the days 
after World War II. The meeting was 

held at the Leland Hotel, which is now 
undergoing a $120 million renovation. 
The hotel is steps away from where 
Max’
s grandson Howard Handler now 
works and lives.
Handler says his father — “a man 
of honor and integrity” — is a major 
influence in his life. Wallace Handler is 
a Detroit litigator known by colleagues 
as the “dean of the bankruptcy bar.
” 
Howard’
s great-uncle Lou Handler, 
a pioneer in the sports business, was 
a one-time boxer who refereed and 
promoted professional championship 
fights, including Joe Louis’
 first Golden 
Gloves title. Lou also founded and 
operated Camp Tamakwa in Ontario, 
Canada. 
Michael Budman, current Tamakwa 
owner, goes back decades with the 
Handler family. 
“It’
s always great when Howard 
Handler finds his way to Camp 
Tamakwa on South Tea Lake, which 
was founded by his family in 1936,
” 
Budman told the JN. “Moving back 
to Detroit will be a great step forward 
because Howard is extremely talented 
and savvy. I’
m sure he’
s going to create 
a great experience in the world-class 
venues in my hometown of Detroit.
”
Throughout his life, Handler says 
he also has been inspired by the late 
David Hermelin, the Detroit-area real 
estate developer who became the U.S. 
Ambassador to Norway. 
“David was a true giant in business 
and philanthropy and community 
leadership; but, most of all, he was a 
family man and a friend and a con-
fidant to a huge number of people,
” 
Handler said. “David was just a true 
Renaissance guy and inspired me, for 
sure. I grew up at his house and have a 
close relationship with the family.
”
A succession of marketing jobs, 
many dealing with entertainment, led 
Handler to 313 Presents. He became 

Spotlight

Howard Handler returns to Detroit to lead
events company 313 Presents.

ADAM FINKEL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN KIRKLAND

Jews in the D

Behind the

FACING PAGE: 
Portrait of 
Howard Handler 
in his office.

on the cover