Opportunity and Sam, the Banana Man
Sam, the Banana Man?
Sam Zemurray was born in the Russian Empire at the latter end of the 19th Century. Born into a poor Jewish family, they were too poor to support him through school and, as a result, he had no formal education.
In his early teens, Sam emigrated to the United States of America. At the age of 17 he recognised an opportunity where others spotted crisis. By the age of 21, he had banked $100,000. A hundred grand in 1898… that’s a lot of money! By 1930, Sam was selling his company for $31.5 million in stock shares; retiring at the youthful age of 53.
