Brooklyn-born businessman Eddie Antar who in 1971 started the electronic retail store Crazy Eddie died on Sunday in New Jersey. The cause of death was not publicized.
The Crazy Eddie chain became a hit in the New York Tri-State area, for its low prices and, even more so, for its outlandish radio and TV ads, featuring a frenzied character played by Jerry Carroll, who ended each spot with the cry “Crazy Eddie, his prices are insane!” Carroll borrowed his style from early TV commercials star Earl “Madman” Muntz. At its peak, the Crazy Eddie chain had 43 stores and reported more than $350 million in sales annually.
In 1984, Antar took his chain public at $8 a share, and the stock price hit $79 per share two years later. However, after dissident stockholders staged a takeover of the company in 1987, they discovered that $45 million in inventoried merchandise was missing. Meanwhile, the feds were investigating Antar for stock manipulation. They accused Antar and his two brothers of stealing cash and inflating the chain’s value. They described Antar’s regular flights to Israel with cash strapped around his body.
In 1990, Antar fled to Israel and remained in hiding for two years, when he was eventually extradited to the US. Sam Antar, Eddie’s cousin who was chief financial officer, pleaded guilty to fraud and testified against Eddie. Eddie’s brother Mitchell pleaded guilty to conspiracy and making false statements and also served time in prison. In the end, Eddie Antar served less than seven years for racketeering conspiracy.
In 2001, Antar tried to re-launch Crazy Eddie online, but failed.
