Few names evoke warmer nostalgia in longtime New Yorkers than Nathan’s Famous, the Coney Island hot-dog emporium that began as a 5-foot-by-8-foot s✅tand on a site purchased for $300 and is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
To commemorate the milestone, t൩he grandson of Nathan Handwerker, the chain’s founder, decided toꩵ write a book about the company’s esteemed history.
But then, so did another grandson.
The resul♐t is two books released a month apart with similar titles, telling similar stories, by authors with the same last name. And if theജ first-cousin authors of the books are to be believed, the more, the merrier.
“Eve🐬ryone in the family should write a book if that’s what they want to do♏,” says Lloyd Handwerker, 59, the author of out Tuesday.
A cinematographer and director, he’s been interviewing people associated with Nathan’s for 30 years and rꦐeleased a documentary also called in 𝕴2014.
Part of the reason for the cordiality 🎐is that while the books cover similar ground, they come from different points of view.
Nathan Handwerker’s two sons, Murray and Sol, both worked in the family business but had such different approaches and personalities th𒅌🦄at the arrangement was always contentious.
Sol left the business in 1963 to open his own restaurant in Ma📖nhattan, although he retained stock ownership in Nathan’s and was still involved in real-estate ventures with the family.
So the brothers’ kids didn’t know each other well and had very different experiences with the family busineꦅs𒐪s.
William, Murray’s son, began working at Nathan’s at 13 and remained for almost three decades until leaving in 1996. By then, he was the last Handwerker in the Nathan’s organization. (The family sold the business in 1987.) His book is written from♔ the perspective of a business insider.
Asked if he always knew working a𝔍t Nathan’s would be his legacy, he answe🗹rs with an enthusiastic, “No doubt! Forever and ever. That’s all I ever wanted.” The 61-year-old’s William’s book, was released last month.
Since Sol, Lloyd’s father, left the business when his son was 7 years 🐲old, Lloyd never worked at Nathan’s. But he did have a thirst for information and a deep desire to tell stories from a young age.
“From the time I wa𒈔s a child, I was eꦦxtremely interested in my grandparents’ stories,” says Lloyd. “I asked my parents to get me a tape recorder, and I used to listen to my grandfather tell stories.”
While the topics the cousin𓂃s cover overlap, the difference in their approaches is vast. William’s book has a just-the-facts vibe and a clear business orientation. His book includes “Frank Lesson” breakout boxes throughout, with advice like, “Always differentiate yourself from your competitors.”
Lloyd spends far more time on the dram﷽atic aspects of Nathan’s early life in Poland, his immigrant journey to America and the details behind his rise to becoming a successful American business owner.
Still, William and Lloyd’s shared heritage means that both men had t🐻heir lives shaped by an American institution.
“Everyone [knew] the name Handwerker in New York,” says Lloyd. “People were constantly coming up and going, ‘Are you related to Nathan’s?’ I was very aware from an early age tha💜t it was an important place and that my grandfather had achieved something great.”
Adds William, “Every time I [talk about Nathan’s, people] go, ‘Oh, I remember when.’ I🅠t ticks off a great memory and puts a big smile on their faces.”