Murray Frum (September 3, 1931 – May 28, 2013) was a Canadian real estate developer and philanthropist.

Murray Frum
Frum with wife Nancy Lockhart at the 2013 CFC Annual Gala & Auction
Born(1931-09-03)September 3, 1931
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
DiedMay 28, 2013(2013-05-28) (aged 81)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Education
Occupation(s)Dentist, real estate developer, philanthropist
Spouses
  • (m. 1957; died 1992)
  • Nancy Lockhart
Children3, including David and Linda Frum
FamilyHoward Sokolowski (son-in-law)

Biography

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Frum was born to a Jewish family on September 3, 1931, the only child of Saul and Rivka Frum, who had emigrated from Poland the year before.[1] Most of their family who stayed in Poland were murdered in the Holocaust.[1] His parents operated a grocery store in Toronto.[2][3] Frum attended the King Edward elementary school and in 1950, graduated from the Harbord Collegiate Institute.[1] In 1956, he graduated with a degree in dentistry from the University of Toronto.[2] In 1970 he left dentistry to become a real estate developer[2] (the Frum Development Group) and made his fortune developing suburban strip malls.[1]

Frum was a collector of African art and donated over 80 pieces to the Art Gallery of Ontario, one of the largest in North America; and along with his son-in-law, Howard Sokolowski, built the gallery in which the collection is housed.[2] He later expanded into Renaissance art.[2] In 2007, he donated Bernini's 17th-century bronze of the crucifixion to the Art Gallery of Ontario which he bought while its origin was uncertain (it was later appraised at $50 million).[2][1] Frum served on the boards of the Stratford Festival, the Canadian Centre for Advanced Film Study, and the Art Gallery of Ontario.[2]

Personal life

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Graves of Murray and Barbara Frum at York Cemetery

Frum married twice. In 1957, he married 19-year-old Barbara Rosberg[3] who would later become a CBC broadcaster; she died of leukemia in 1992.[2][4] The couple had three children: David Frum, a journalist and a former speechwriter for U.S. president George W. Bush; Linda Frum, a Canadian senator who is married to Howard Sokolowski; and Matthew Frum.[2]

His second marriage was to Nancy Lockhart.[2] He died on May 28, 2013, at his home in Toronto of lung cancer despite being a non-smoker.[2][1] He was buried with Barbara at York Cemetery

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Martin, Sandra (May 31, 2013). "Murray Frum: A passionate, disciplined art collector who gave back to the cultural community". The Globe and Mail.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Winsa, Patty (May 28, 2013). "Murray Frum, developer and philanthropist, died Monday at age 81". Toronto Star .
  3. ^ a b "Toronto mourns passing of Murray Frum". CBC News. May 28, 2013.
  4. ^ Brown, Michael (March 1, 2009). "Barbara Frum". Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia. Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved September 29, 2011.