Tom Carvel
Greek-American businessman and entrepreneur
Tom Carvel (born Athanasios Karvelas (Greek: Ἀθανάσιος Καρβέλας); July 14, 1906 – October 21, 1990) was a Greek-born American businessman and entrepreneur known for the invention and promotion of soft-serve ice cream in the northeastern United States. He was the founder of the Carvel brand and franchise.2
From Wikipedia’s article on Tom Carvel (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Born Jul 14, 1906, died Oct 22, 1990.1
Companies
Career
Occupation: entrepreneur, inventor.4
Carvel began selling ice cream out of his truck in 1929 in Hartsdale, New York. On Memorial Day weekend in 1934, his truck had a flat tire, so he pulled into a parking lot next to a pottery store and began selling his melting ice cream to vacationers who were driving by. The owner of the store allowed Carvel to use electricity from his store. As such, Carvel opened his parked truck for ice cream sales. Within two days, he had sold his entire supply of ice cream and concluded that he could increase his profits by working from a fixed location.
From Wikipedia’s article on Tom Carvel (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Personal life
Legal issues and controversies
Controversy
In October 2009, Carvel's niece Pamela Carvel filed court papers to have Carvel's body exhumed and an autopsy performed, stating she suspected he was drugged or suffocated by employees whom Carvel suspected of embezzlement. Her petition was denied, and she later became a fugitive from justice in a personal bankruptcy case. She had been vying for control of his $67-million estate.
From Wikipedia’s article on Tom Carvel (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Links
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataTom Carvel on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaTom Carvel on Wikipedia
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- 7WikidataCarvel, Founder
- 8Wikimedia CommonsTom Carvel photo by Bert Morgan, Public domain