Biography[edit]

LeFrak was born in Manhattan, New York, to Harry (Harris) Lefrak and the former Sarah Schwartz, who had originated in Slutsk,^[2] near Minsk, in Belarus (then Russia).^[3][4][5] He grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and attended Erasmus Hall High School in Flatbush, Brooklyn.^[6] He graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 1940,^[7] with the University's LeFrak Hall named for him. While at Maryland, he was a brother in the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity.


In the early 1970s he was sued by the federal government for housing discrimination; the case was resolved in a January 28, 1971 agreement.^[8]


In 1975, he co-founded a small recording and publishing company, The Entertainment Company, with his then son-in-law Martin Bandier and Charles Koppelman.^[9] The company recorded "Groovin'" by the Rascals, "Here You Come Again" by Dolly Parton, "My Heart Belongs to Me" by Barbra Streisand, Streisand and Donna Summer's duet, "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)", "By The Time I Get to Phoenix" by Glen Campbell, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" by Diana Ross, "Love Will Keep Us Together" by the Captain & Tennille, and the soundtrack album to the television series Fame.^[9] In 1984, the relationship was dissolved after Bandier divorced LeFrak's daughter.^[9]


In 1988, LeFrak was honored by the United Nations, along with former President Jimmy Carter, for global contributions through Habitat International. After his death, his son, Richard LeFrak, became CEO of the LeFrak Organization.^[10]