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Lewis Goodman Obituary
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Memories and Condolences
for Lewis Goodman
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Steve Blatt Becker
April 5, 2024
One of the great men in our world...a true sportsman. A great Dad I'm sure. A generous man who possibly took half the world fishing! Very few fish within 10 miles had much of a chance of escaping his prowess. And what a diver he was as well. A heck of a guide to life to all the kids who came near him......
Steve Becker
June 27, 2021
Lew was the KING. He did it all and gave ALL. To go fishing in Bimini with Uncle Lew was the ultimate joy for a teenager. What a generous and kind giant of a man he was....RIP.
Scott Keen
April 28, 2002
Dear Lou:
I think you are the coolest guy I ever knew. I can't think of anyone with better qualities than you. It was always a pleasure to see Big Daddy come through the back door. Your demeanor towards me always showed such class. Working in a bar, everyone has an opportunity to pick on the bartender. In our 13 years together, never once did you participate. My trips on Big Daddy are ones that I will always cherish. To know someone who is the best there is doesn't happen very often, especially for a guy like me. But, Lou, you were the best and you've got the records to show it. Your fishing expertise had to be one of the finest in the world. To come in every afternoon from the most fertile fishing grounds with the biggest catch was proof enough for me. To walk up the hill to the old woman's house and hear all the natives yell "Hey, Big Daddy!" when they had their barbecues going with fish caught from your boat. The island style yellow tail is something that only a handful of people will ever get to experience. It was the best! Everytime Big Daddy pulled into Coral Gables, my son filled his belly with the most delicious yellow tail available. He's grown to be a smart, athletic and fine young man, and I attribute this to the yellow tail. We love you and will miss you Big Daddy (Ambermahn, Ronnie, Rex, Chico, Slim, Katz, and Ricky). You truly are the Big Daddy and always will be! Love, Scotty
Jon Blatt
April 15, 2002
Dear Goodman Gals & Families:
To say that Lew Goodman was a big influence on my life would be an understatement. Rarely a day goes by that I don’t think fondly about boating and fishing in the Keys and Bahamas with Big Daddy. In fact, boating, from childhood through the adult years, has been the main memory and recreational influence on me and it is something I can enjoy with my children on the large lakes in our area of the world.
I’m sure you all remember the early days at the botel in Key Colony Beach. I even remember Lew’s first boat, an odd looking thing that had some kind of bubble front to it. Or maybe that was Al Aronson’s boat, or perhaps they owned it together. In any event when Lew took a huge step and moved up to the Hatteras 34 foot Sara Jane, now that was notice to the world that he had arrived. Of course, it was just the beginning. But who was Sara Jane?
The Big Daddy years were awesome. Just awesome. The 60's in Bimini and the Rubbish Gobbler era will never be forgotten or duplicated. Half the island kids were clothed in Rubbish Gobbler shirts. The good deeds Lew did for so many of the islanders may not be well known, but I remember at least the ones I heard about. I'm sure he changed many lives there for the better.
In later years, when us kids were off to college and then as adults, the occasional fishing trips to Key West and Bimini continued, I had the good fortune to be invited on a number of them through the mid 90's.
Each time, whether gliding in on Chalk’s or riding the bow as the boat entered the turquoise cut of Bimini, I thought “this is the life”. And it was. True, my father had boats and we boated and fished plenty back then, but fishing and hanging out with Lew was definitely the big leagues. Just hanging out at Brown’s dock or nearby docks in later years and packing fish in those special plastic bags, being scolded time and again how to properly flatten the fish in the bag before folding, now those were the days.
In more recent years I loved watching and hearing Lew and Rich yell at each other. Now that was a unique relationship that I’m sure we could say was, at times, a love/hate relationship. But they stayed together, didn’t they?
Lew was kind enough to take my son Jason and I to Bimini for what would be our last trip, a few years ago. Jason would have been 12 or 13, and had heard millions of fish stories about Bimini and Uncle Lew. When Jason was younger he fished many times off your dock in Old Cutler Bay and Lew was not a stranger. This was his first time going to Bimini and fishing for two or three days though. I don’t think we killed the fish that time. But it was a great experience for this father and son that won’t be forgotten.
Another memory was several years earlier when Steve and I went to Bimini with Lew, and I remember a grouper hitting so hard it broke the rod holder right off and the expensive rod and reel went right over the side. Lew wouldn’t stand for that, so he ordered Steve over the side with a miniature air tank that was no bigger than a small water bottle. Lew said it was good for at least ten minutes of air. Steve was underwater about two minutes, just getting to the bottom 50 feet down, when the air ran out. Let’s just say both Steve and the gear returned in one piece, with a few choice words for Big Daddy.
I am the keeper of the old family pictures, most of which were slides in those days, and I know we have a number of slides that you would love to see. One of these days I’ll dig them out and make some prints for you. These were good times for Lew and dearly missed Norma, and of course, you gals were in many shots as well. There is a great shot of the two of them boating together on Lake Mead, and a great one of your Dad on a search for gold in the Dominican Republic. What an adventure they lived!
It’s so sad that of all these good friends of our parents, I think only Max Stein of the men is left, and he’s ailing. And of course, Uncle Eltie is still going strong, thanks to those vitamins. How about all those crazy parties and golfing trips they took together?
I know the past months had to be difficult as boating became a thing of the past. Babe told me Lew couldn’t go out but just like looking at the boat out back. I understand completely.
I sadly miss Lew Goodman. Fish will sleep easier now that he is gone, but I won’t. He was a whale of a man.
Love to you all,
Jon Blatt & family
Dennis Rafkind
April 13, 2002
Dear Joni, Carol, and Dore
It has been many years since I have seen Lew Goodman or any of you. It's probably over 30 years since I have had much, if any contact with any of you. Yet even after all this time, and even though the contact was not that regular,still, I was touched and feel fortunate to have met and known your Dad and Mom and all of you.
There was a "Spirit", and simple yet powerful and passionate love of life that I experienced in your Dad's company, a Joy in many of the Simple Pleasures in life, a man who knew the importance of incorporating Leisure and Pleasure in life, in the midst of a crazy workaholic world.
Just in the few times I went out on "Big Daddy", the easy and natural way your Dad opened his Heart and shared he joy of life with people freely touched me. Since I did not live and grow up with your Dad, I can not speak fully to both sides of him.
I'm sure like all of us he had is foibles, and I do not wish to over idealize who he was.
But I am grateful for they ways he reminded without saying anything, was encouraging me in his very being, to find and discover the people and the passions that bring real Joy and Pleasure into our Life. At least that is what I saw in my brief encounters.
I have not yet had to go through the death of a Parent yet, and to have lost both parents, well it is beyond my present experience.
I can not know the extent of your loss, and can only wish you love and support in your time of grieving. And that the Spirit of Life I felt so stongly in both your parents, will always remain alive in you , and that you may call on their Spirit of Life in times of need and guidance. And that their Love for you and for Life, will be kept alive in your Hearts and the Hearts of all who knew and loved him.
I am thankful for having met and spent time with you and your parents during very formative years in my life, and I hope all that you loved most about your parents, will live on in you and in your children.
You are in my thoughts right now, and I hope that you find love and support around you to help you through the huge range of complex emotions and feelings that must inevitably come up in the face of such Loss.
It is still strange and mysterious to me that people I hardly know, or or whose time together very brief, can still touch me and be a part of me for the rest of my life. I do not know exactly how that happens, but I know that happened with me and your family. Even though my time with most of you was brief.
It is my sincere wish that Support and Love rise up all around you in ways that will be undeniable, to help and aid you during this time of feeling your Loss
Sincerely,
Dennis Rafkind
Patricia Foster
April 11, 2002
Sweet Dore, Carol, and Joni,
I sat here reading your father's guestbook with tears streaming down my face and warm memories in my heart. When I read the names of Babe Blatt, Bart Udell, Bobby Fisher and others I've not spoken with in years who also have such fond memories of your dad it helps ease the pain of his passing.
Lew was probably the most influential person in my life. You three are his blood daughters, but I always felt like his (unofficial)adopted daughter. Going to work for him at the tender age of 19, he molded my character and my understanding of what being a "human" being was to be for the rest of my life.
In office memos at United Sanitation, he signed his name, "LRG," short for Lewis Richard Goodman. We used to joke that LRG was the perfect abreviation for a man who was, indeed, "large." He was larger than life for those of us priveleged enough to know him well.
He taught me so many things that in remembering him it's hard to reconcile where I would be today had I not have had the honor of being first, his employee, but everlastingly his friend.
I don't think any of the people who loved and knew him could really define him. He was one of the most complex people I've ever known despite his "it is what it is" outer shell, there was a soft, underbelly that was easily wounded but never exposed; protected well by his sometimes "gruff" exterior.
I believe one of his greatest joys in life was helping other people. He gave freely of himself to anyone who needed him and in that selfless giving he blossomed. Teaching and helping were to him what oxygen and food are to the rest of us.
Dore, thank you for calling me last summer and letting me know that his cancer had returned and it was terminal. I will be forever indebted to you for that week I spent with him in August. Five days of quality time, remembering the "good 'ol days" and strolling down memory lane, laughing and talking about people and events long since past, that would never had happened had you not been kind enough to let me know that it might be my last opportunity to be with your dad. Thank you for knowing I loved him too.
Right now Lew, Max Fisher, Charlie Gottlieb, Neville and Ossie Brown, Jimmy Pitt, Bill Rolle, Niggy Devine, and all his friends who've gone before him are out yellowtail fishing. And, no doubt, his beloved Norma is in the galley making brisket sandwiches for them all.
My love to all of you.
Linda (Green) Sandrich
April 11, 2002
Dear Dore, Carol and Joni --
It has been many, many years since I saw you or your folks, but the memories are so vivid. Through all the years of my growing up your family contributed a crazy kind of stability to my life. Your friends have been so eloquent in this book that there is little left unsaid. Clearly Norma and Lew touched many people and will remain part of our hearts forever.
Love,
Linda
Dan (still Danny to Lew) Diamond
April 10, 2002
Dore, Carol, & Joni
I am indeed fortunate to be happily successful in the car business here in West Palm Beach because my Uncle Lew steered me here in 1985. And without his caring direction in the years following my father's death in '74, I can only imagine how I might have continued to flounder.
He had a way of cutting through the crap and getting right to the meat of what was influencing my life...good and bad. His advice was never delivered as 'advice', but more as simply his perception of the obvious and logical path to follow given the current set of circumstances, even the bad ones.
And wasn't his direction in both life and business affairs always on the money...literally!
Thanks Uncle Lew. I know I'm not alone in saying, "Thanks for improving my life!" I honor your memory now and in all my years to come.
Dan Diamond
HELEN RAFKIND
April 10, 2002
My Dear Girls
I cant say it better than the notice
in the paper said it!Lew was a rare bird.we have so many memories
of fun times together--crazy parties
wonderful family affairs. I think of Norma often.Sheleft me with so many fond memories.I will always
remember Lew's sense of humor.good nature..i do think of them now happily together.
much love to all of you
HELEN RAFKIND
17417 LochLomond Way
Boca Raton,Fl.33496
[email protected]
.
Babe Blatt
April 10, 2002
Dear Dore, Carol & Joni:
With Norma and Lou gone, it is indeed the end of an era for all of us -- except for the Margulises years ago, we have only permitted one death per couple, and no divorces! Doesn't that say something wonderful about our group of friends, or was it only the times?
Lew was truly Big Daddy, in stature, in business, in playing hard and often in yelling loud. We were all friends from early marriage -- Gerson was Lew's lawyer and we were also a boating family. In the early years of small kids and small boats we shared a duplex in Marathon and in later years of bigger kids and bigger boats we were cruising the Bahamas each summer, and in between, flying and boating to Bimini.
Our good and beautiful Norma could civilize or socialize Lew only up to a point, forcing him to go to parties (where he fell asleep right after dinner), to weddings and to Bar Mitzvah parties (never to the Saturday service ((fishing time!!)) except for Jon Blatt and Jon Stein, and only because they were great fishermen.
No sentiment here -- he even had my Steve arrested in Georgia because he "forgot" to return the diving equipment he "borrowed".
I decorated Lew's first brand new big Big Daddy for him or with him, and that was the only time he ever listened to me or asked my opinion, calling daily at 7 AM with my orders for the day. Norma and I were doing their house that same year and Lew and I lied to her about the price of everything.
We traveled together often, the Dominican Republic (ah Norma, remember the horseback ride we barely survived?), Las Vegas, North Carolina, weekend golfing trips and in between, always Bimini.
What a great life and lifestyle we had. There were some bad times and sad times, but it's the beautiful times we all remember.
I moved from Miami shortly after Norma died, and when Gerson was already fading. So without Norma to hold it all together we sort of drifted apart. We weren't boating anymore and my kids lived in North Carolina -- the glue was coming apart.
Marcia and I miss Norma every day, and my kids sure miss fishing with Lew. Since I never saw Lew really sick the last few years, I can easily remember the great times and his vibrant life, fully lived.
As Jon said when Gerson died, "Dad had a great run", and Lew certainly did too.
Love and comfort to you all and Mel, Jill, David, Marisol, Maria, Molly, Katie Rose, Miles & Aaron.
Babe
SUE ALEXANDER
April 10, 2002
I STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN OVER BEAUTIFUL, SWEET NORMA. MY ONLY SOLACE IS THAT THEY ARE TOGETHER AGAIN, JUST BEING THE COOLEST COUPLE I KNEW. GROWING UP WITH THE GOODMAN GIRLS WAS THE BEST.... SPENDING SUMMERS IN BIMINI, WINTERS IN THE KEYS,(REMEMBER ALL THOSE BOYS WE PICKED UP?!) CARPOOLING TO SCHOOL, SKIPPING SCHOOL (REMEMBER, CAROL, YOU BAD GIRL?), PLAYING WITH THE LITTLE BIMINI BOYS ON THE BEACH, AND YES, EVEN DRINKING BEER AND SMOKING WITH THE LOCALS! MY FONDEST CHILDHOOD MEMORIES MOSTLY INCLUDE THE GOODMAN FAMILY. HOW LUCKY I WAS TO HAVE GROWN UP WITH THEM ALL. I THINK OF JOANIE, CAROL AND DORI WITH LOVE...AND I THINK OF UNCLE LEW WITH A GRIN ON HIS FACE AND A TWINKLE IN HIS EYE, BECAUSE HE'S LOOKING AT HIS BEAUTIFUL WIFE, NORMA. SUE (BLATT) ALEXANDER
Eve Schutt
April 9, 2002
It has been so many years since I have seen any of the Goodman family but I remember them all with fond memories. "Big Daddy" and Norma will always be part of my childhood when visiting my Aunt and Uncle, the Fishers. My fondest regards to all of you.
Berna Fisher
April 9, 2002
To the Goodman girls, their mates and their children.......Lew and Norma were as much a part of my life in Coral Gables as the air I breathed there. Jerry has said it all far better than I ever could. Jerry, Milt and I were privileged to be included as part of the Goodman family, and I will always remember how important all of you were to us.
I send you all my love, and know that you'll carry on the legacy left to you by two of the very finest people who will be forever in our thoughts and our hearts.
Berna Fisher
Jerry Fisher
April 9, 2002
The members of the Goodman family have been part of my life for as long as I can remember. The beauty, grace and warm heart of Norma was a counterpoint to the ruggedness of Lew. I adored them both as I was growing up and was honored that they allowed me to serve as their physician in later years.
My heartfelt condolences go out to Dore, Carol and Joni. We shared many wonderful times together in our youth.
Lew was a "man's man" who was as close to the living image of Earnest Hemingway as anyone I have ever met, yet he never took himself too seriously. He and my own father were the two people who helped me through the rites of passage on the road to adulthood.
Those rites of passage are fresh in my memory and they include my being invited to join the "men" for weekend trips to Marathon and fishing trips to the Ponderosa, a large area of Florida Bay that rivaled the famous Nevada ranch in size. Lew had managed to find a small island of snapper and grouper within a sea of catfish. In the days before electronic navigation, he taught me how to line up radio towers and parts of the Seven Mile bridge so that I could later return to the "Ponderosa" on my own, which I did.
I remember the early days in Bimini, flying in on a Chalk's seaplane and landing in the water in the middle of the Bimini Channel. On our arrival at the 100 foot square of concrete which served as Chalk's Bimini International Airport, we were greeted by children, teenagers, visiting U.S. congressmen, and Bahamian Custom's officials. What these folks had in common was that they were all wearing "Big Daddy" t-shirts. We stayed at Brown's hotel and I acquired a taste for conch chowder and other Bahamian delicacies.
Lew taught me how to fish in blue water. He showed me how to shoot a 12 gauge shotgun, how to fix a carburetor, how to keep a propeller shaft from leaking, and how to safely free a prop fouled with anchor line while we were floating in the middle of the Gulf Stream. He showed me, by example, how to be a man in a world of men and he did it gently and with grace. He shared with me his love of the outdoors, his taste for adventure and his respect for the power of the sea.
I recall, with great pleasure the Sunday night dinners (which had to be over before "Bonanza") with the Goodman clan. I remember eating the duck which Lew brought back from a hunting trip in Georgia. Lew calculated that the cost per duck was about $1,000 a piece after considering his expenses for the trip. I asked him whether it was worth the expense and he responded, "absolutely," without hesitation.
My father found a soul mate in Lew. In many ways they were quite different but they shared a love of fishing and the outdoors which bonded them for their adult lives. I do not recall my father ever taking a non-business related vacation except for the yearly pilgrimage to Bimini with Lew for the Big Game tournament. Dad generally returned with a serious sunburn, a trophy under his arm and another year's supply of stories. After my father's death, Lew confided in me that he would truly miss him as a friend but more importantly because Lew felt that my Dad was the best fisherman he had ever met. High praise from the best fisherman I ever met.
I think that Dad and Lew can now fish whenever they want to and it is my firm belief that where they are, the weather is always good and the seas are always smooth.
Richard Rubinson
April 9, 2002
I first got to know Lew as a patient over twelve years ago. We became fast friends and shared our love of boats and fishing. Lew was very generous to me; he invited me on the Big Daddy several times. Our trips tp Bimini were memorable and always productive. He taught me, and many other people, the art and science of yellowtail fishing, and shared all of his "secret spots" freely. I will miss his pleasant nature, his generosity, and his companionship.
Barton Udell
April 9, 2002
I extend my heartfelt sympathies to the family of Lewis Goodman. It not only saddened me to read of Lew's passing, but it was a great shock. Lew was always "larger than life" to me, and it is almost inconceivable that he could not go on forever.
Of course, I remember his love of boats. Norma once told me that when Lew went into a marine hardware store, he could spend the afternoon just seeing which bolts had better anti-corrosive features. I remember his excitement whenever he was getting a new "Big Daddy." But Lew was really the "Big Daddy" himself.
I remember the very beautiful wedding on the point of your home with the wind moaning across the microphone.
I remember many wonderful Friday luncheon buffets at the Dupont Plaza with Lew and Joeie Storrelli (and sometime Serge too), and, of course, Gerson.
I remember the buyout of United by Sanitas Service Corporation. I also remember that we were told that Wayne Hyzienga (sp?) had a very high opinion of Lew, and for good reason. Lew was a brilliant and tough business man who made a lot of money in a very tough business with a lot of very tough guys.
I remember Lew and Norma. Norma so beautiful and incredibly charming. She never failed to make everyone feel comfortable. Lew, with a huge smile that lit up a room, and an opinion about most things. He was articulate and persuasive and great company.
I remember them both with warmth, respect and sadness, as you must too.
Barton Udell
Craig Gottlieb
April 9, 2002
Lew was a wonderful friend of our family, as well as a valued personal advisor and friend of my father's, and then, after my dad's death, of mine. I will always remember the Bimini trips, Lew's generosity, and his practical outlook on life.
There's a funny story that I'm sure everyone will love. He was in the funny habit of telling his first mate on Big Daddy that there was a large mermaid statue situated somewhere on Bimini. I'm not sure if his first mate ever caught on (he always said he should go find it), but it was a really humorous and creative idea for laughs.
Lew, may you find calm seas, large fish, and a temperate climate. We will miss you.
Allen J. Smith
April 9, 2002
I met Lou as a teenager through my dear friend and mentor Charles Gottlieb. My memories of fishing in Bimini on Big Daddy with Charles and Lou are still vivid and exciting. The colors of the water, the fish, the exotic surroundings of the island, but, most important, a boy being allowed to participate and enjoy the comraderie of "real" men, mens men.
They were charasimatic,tough, and Runyonesque, but also warm and gentle, the iron fists in the velvet gloves. Later, like many other students, Lou gave me a much needed job during the summer at United Sanitation. Only those other young men who had done it could understand how being a garbage man could be rewarding, at times enjoyable, and often poetic. It has been over 30 years but, rarely a year passes that I don't reflect back with on the summer that I worked on a front-loader for Lou. The good in my life is to a large degree the sum of the people who have come in and out of it. Lou was a part of that. I will always appreciate and value his influence and friendship. Lou, Thank you.
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