Morton Rueben Bloom

Morton Bloom
Born on May 25th, 1927 in the small town of Skaudvile, Lithuania, passed away April 6, 2014 at age 86. He was our dad, our Zade (Yiddish for grandpa), our Great Zade, and to every
person that met him, a friend. A man who lived the American Dream, and successfully taught his offspring to do the same. During the German occupation of Europe, Mort and his siblings headed
to New York, NY, escaping the Holocaust as many Jewish families tried to do at this time. Mort was only 15 years old. Once arriving to Ellis Island, his name was changed, his birthday was
different, and his life as he knew it would be forever changed. He was in a new country, a huge city, with only the clothes on his back, and he did not speak one word of English. But he was
alive, and that was enough to start his journey toward the American Dream. He made a decision and a promise to himself, that he would do whatever he had to do, so that he would give his children the life he never had.
Mort had an uncle in Minneapolis that he joined to find work. He then joined the Navy to fight for his newfound freedom and country. In the Navy, he became known as the ship’s Boxing Champion, and later went on to win the coveted Golden Gloves title. In addition, Mort was a pitcher for the Cleveland Indians. One day, when the leaves began to change, Mort entered his normal
Minneapolis bus to find the most beautiful woman in the world sitting there. Her name was Marcia Fox. He said "I am going to marry you". She slapped him. He pursued her until finally a year later on October 12th, she married him. When you asked him, he would say that Oct 12th was
the day Christopher Columbus discovered America and was also the day he discovered his wife. They went on to have two beautiful sons, Michael and Alan.
Mort started at the bottom and worked his way up. He owned junk yards, liquor stores, Aviv nursing homes, and shopping centers. He invested in a small amusement park called Spring Lake Park Amusement Center and again decided to make a big life decision. He sold all he owned to buy a piece of real estate on Hennepin and 5th Ave. It was an amazing brick building on a corner lot on the main drag in Minneapolis. It was the perfect opportunity to get his sons involved with the family business. This building had many office spaces and a small local gay bar called The Gay 90’s. With his sons, Mort's plan was to keep this investment and run the local bar the best he knew how. The Gay 90’s began to grow. Turning the office spaces into the more bars, creating a multiplex of bars and the world famous drag show. The Gay 90’s is now legendary. Mort's son sold
the Gay 90’s in 2008. Preceded in death by parents, Mayer & Sarah Bloom; wife of 59 years, Marcia Bloom; Daughter, Bonnie Jo; daughter-in-law, Mary Bloom; brothers, Jerry Bloom and Mitchell Bloom; sister, Betty Bix. Survived by loving sons, Alan and Michael Bloom; grandchildren, Paul & Tina Bloom, Jesse & Emily Bloom, Charlene & Will Lee, Corey Bloom, Dana & Jacob Ray; great-grandchildren, Braden, Lauryn, and MaKenna Bloom, Jameson and Michael Lee, Anna, Jacob Jr., and Madisen Ray, Levi Morton Bloom. Funeral service TUESDAY, 1:00PM, HODROFF-EPSTEIN MEMORIAL CHAPEL, 126 E. Franklin Ave., Mpls.