Frederick leonard biography chess
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Leonard Chess
Polish-American record executive (1917–1969)
Leonard Samuel Chess (born Lejzor Szmuel Czyż; March 12, 1917 – October 16, 1969), was a Polish-American record company executive and the co-founder of Chess Records.
Frederick leonard biography chess
He was influential in the development of the recording industry, and electric blues, Chicago blues, and rock and roll.
Early life
Chess was born to Polish-Jewish parents in Motal, now in Belarus.[1][2][3][4] He and his brother, Fiszel, sister, Malka, and mother arrived in New York in 1928 from Poland.
They quickly went to Chicago to join their father, Joseph, who was already engaged in the liquor business, which was illegal at the height of Prohibition and controlled in Chicago by Al Capone.[5] The family name was changed to Chess, with Lejzor becoming Leonard and Fiszel becoming Philip.
Chess Records
Leonard and his brother Phil became involved in the black nightclub scene on the South Side of C