THE BALLOON MAN

GEORGE A. HAMID Jr. PASSES

 

HAMID, GEORGE A. JR. 94 - owner of the Atlantic City Steel Pier from the 1940s to the 1970s died on Saturday February 23, 2013 at Shore Medical Center. George was born in Jersey City on November 25, 1918 to circus owner George A. Hamid, Sr. and his wife, Elizabeth (Bess) Raab Hamid. He graduated from Princeton University in 1940. After attending the Wharton School, he enlisted in the Navy. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander, serving mostly on a tanker in the South Pacific during World War II. After the war, he joined his father in the growing family entertainment business. In addition to the Steel Pier, the family owned the Hamid-Morton Circus (now Hamid Circus), the New Jersey State Fair, the Greensboro, North Carolina Agricultural Fair and a number of Atlantic City movie theatres, and was the booking agent for numerous county and state fairs across the country. George brought the Beatles to the Atlantic City Convention Hall in August 1964 during their first major tour of the United States. George and his father were two of the original owners of the Miami Dolphins. During his business career he served as president of the Atlantic City Chamber of Commerce, president of the Circus Producers Association of North America and Executive Vice President of Freedomland Amusement Park in New York. George also was business manager for heavyweight title contender Ernie Terrell and owner of the mile and one-half Trenton International Speedway. He was a member of the Crescent Shrine and an unwavering supporter of Princeton athletics. George was awarded the Manners Prize for excellence in creative writing during his senior year at Princeton and went on to write and publish three books (Circus, Boy Acrobat and The Acrobat) based on the life of his father. He was predeceased by his wife, Patricia, his son, Herbert, and his great grandson, John Davis, III. He is survived by sons, James Hamid (Lorraine) of Galloway Township, George Hamid, III (Patricia) of Egg Harbor Township, and Timothy Hamid (Linda) of Silver Plume, CO, and by a daughter, Elizabeth Roberts (William) of Keene, NY. He is also survived by grandchildren Christine Davis, James Hamid, Jr., Carolyn Hamid, Kristina Roberts, Marta Russell, Ashley Hamid and Alisha Hamid, and by nine great grandchildren. There will be a gathering of family and friends at Jeffries & Keates Funeral Home, Tilton Road and Infield Ave, Northfield NJ 08225 at 2:30 p.m. on Monday, April 1, followed by a Memorial Service at the funeral home at 3:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Shriners Hospitals for Children (www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org or 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, FL 33607) or to the John Davis, III Memorial Scholarship Fund in care of Jeffries & Keates Funeral Home at the above address. To share your fondest memory of George please visit www.lifecelebration.com
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 Published in The Press of Atlantic City on February 25, 2013