Portrait of Toots Shor

Birthday profile

Toots Shor

Toots Shor, American businessman, founded Toots Shor's Restaurant (died 1977)

Born
May 6, 1903
Died
January 23, 1977
Zodiac sign
Taurus
Birth year
1903

About Toots Shor

Bernard "Toots" Shor was an American bar owner, and was the proprietor of the saloon and restaurant Toots Shor's Restaurant, in Manhattan. He ran three establishments under that name, but his first was located at 51 West 51st Street. He was a saloonkeeper, friend, and confidant to some of New York's biggest celebrities during that era. In September 1958, Shor sold the lease for his 51st Street restaurant for $1.5 million to William Zeckendorf but had until June 1959 to leave. He became a man about town in Manhattan after opening his own restaurant, Toots Shor's, in 1940 at 51 West 51st Street with funding from Leo Justin, a New Jersey theater owner, who put up half of the $100,000 cost.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Toots Shor timeline

  1. He became a man about town in Manhattan after opening his own restaurant, Toots Shor's, in 1940 at 51 West 51st Street with funding from Leo Justin, a New Jersey theater owner, who put up half of the $100,000 cost.
  2. In September 1958, Shor sold the lease for his 51st Street restaurant for $1.5 million to William Zeckendorf but had until June 1959 to leave.

The world when Toots Shor was born

Toots Shor was born in 1903. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1903

  • Top movieThe Great Train Robbery (first narrative film)
  • Best-selling book"Lady Rose's Daughter" – Mrs. Humphry Ward

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentFirst World Series — Boston vs Pittsburgh
  • Top headlineWright brothers achieve first powered flight
  • Technology milestoneFirst powered airplane flight (12 seconds, 120 feet)
  • World population~1.63B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderTheodore Roosevelt
  • U.S. population80.4M

1903 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Toots Shor's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19032026
Population80.4M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

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