Draft:Louis Boasberg

Louis Boasberg (October 5, 1910 - November 9, 1994). was a member of Tulane University’s 1932 Rose Bowl team. He helped found the New Orleans Novelty Company, an arcade business.

Early life and Family
Louis M. Boasberg was born on October 5, 1910 in Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee to Mark Boasberg (1874-1956) and Sadye Mayer (1879-1975) who were both Jewish. Mark Boasberg was a successful night club owner in New Orleans (who was also well known in horse racing circles under the name of 'Jack Sheehan', for the tip-sheet he published). Louis was the grandson of Benjamin Boasberg (1829-1895) and Sarah Van Baalen Boasberg (1840-1901) both from Amsterdam. His mother’s parents were Isaac Mayer (1844-1889) and Bertha Goodman Mayer (1852-1919).

College Football career
He attended Spring Hill College, a private Jesuit college in Alabama, in 1928-1929 (where he was on the baseball and football teams) before transferring to Tulane University. He was a member of the 1931 and 1933 football teams, playing at the positions of end and tackle. Weighing 180-190 pounds, number 58 Boasberg was the star tackle for the 1931 team, considered one of the best teams in school history. The “Green Wave” finished the regular season in 1931 undefeated (11-0-0) and were ranked number 2 in the country. The national championship became the Rose Bowl when they faced number 1 USC. The Trojans won the game 21-12.

Service during World War II
During World War II, Boasberg served in the Navy aboard the U.S.S. Intrepid, an aircraft carrier assigned to the Pacific. The Intrepid (known as The Fighting “I”), participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, including the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Boasberg held the rank of Chief Specialist (A) and was an athletic / physical training instructor

New Orleans Novelty Company
Boasberg while in college showed an interest in pinball machines and with an old high school friend, Ray Bosworth, founded the business New Orleans Novelty Company, which became an internationally recognized distributing business.

Family
In 1938 Boasberg married Barbara Jane Slacke (1915-2014), daughter of George Alfred Slacke (1883-1951) and Ethel Leone Cuthbertson (1893-1988). Barbara was an alumnus of the University of Washington. The couple had five children:Jack Mark Boasberg (b. 1939), George Robert Boasberg (1941-2011), Barry Louis Boasberg (b. 1943), Edward Julian Boasberg (1948-2020), and Barbara Jane Boasberg (b. 1948).

Death
Louis M. Boasberg died on November 9, 1994 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Louis was mentioned on a memorial in Lake Lawn Park Cemetery and Mausoleum, New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana, United States.