Crazy Eddie

Eddie Antar (December 18, 1947–September 10, 2016) The predecessor to Crazy Eddie was a consumer electronics store called Sight and Sound. It was operated by ERS Electronics, a company owned by Sam M. Antar, Eddie Antar, and Eddie Antar's cousin Ronnie Gindi. Sight and Sound, located on Kings Highway in Brooklyn, began operations in 1969. Eddie Antar became known as "Crazy Eddie" for his sales approach. Within eighteen months, the store was near bankruptcy. Eddie Antar later bought out Gindi's ownership stake, and Sam M. Antar retained an ownership interest while leaving day-to-day operations to Eddie Antar. In 1971, the Kings Highway store was renamed Crazy Eddie. During the 1970s, the company expanded beyond Brooklyn. A second location opened in Syosset, New York, in 1973, followed by a third location in Greenwich Village in 1975. The company established a corporate office on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn that year. By 1977, it had opened additional stores, including locations in The Bronx and in Paramus, New Jersey, along Route 17. By 1981, Crazy Eddie operated ten locations, including a Manhattan store on East 57th Street on the Upper East Side. ==Advertising==

Crazy Eddie advertising in the New York metropolitan area featured Jerry Carroll. The association began in 1972, when Carroll was a radio disc jockey known as "Dr. Jerry" at WPIX-FM. Antar purchased on-air advertising and Carroll delivered the slogan "his prices are insane" in an exaggerated style. Antar requested that Carroll repeat the delivery consistently in later advertisements. Crazy Eddie also produced a commercial depicting Carroll as a superhero character. Warner Communications sued the chain over that advertisement; the dispute was later settled. Crazy Eddie advertising was referenced and parodied in other media. Not Necessarily the News aired a parody commercial featuring a caricature of Oliver North. Saturday Night Live aired a parody segment on January 22, 1977, featuring Dan Aykroyd as "Crazy Ernie". The commercials also appeared in films, including Splash (1984). In 1985, Carroll appeared in a television commercial for Yoplait yogurt. Crazy Eddie hosted in-store appearances by musicians, including the members of Queen at a Manhattan location on July 27, 1982, prior to the band's performance at Madison Square Garden. ==Fraud and decline==

Crazy Eddie management engaged in tax and accounting fraud, including falsifying records to reduce taxable income. The company also paid employees off the books and skimmed cash receipts. According to published accounts, portions of the proceeds were deposited in Israeli bank accounts beginning in 1979, and the family deposited millions of dollars in offshore accounts during the early 1980s. Crazy Eddie held its initial public offering on September 13, 1984 (former symbol: CRZY). Shares, which were traded on the NASDAQ, initially sold for $8. By early 1986, the stock traded above $75 per share. Eddie Antar recruited his cousin Sam E. Antar to assist with accounting and financial reporting. Sammy earned an accounting degree in 1980 and worked for Penn and Horowitz, Crazy Eddie's auditor. In 1986, he became chief financial officer. Published accounts describe schemes that used funds held abroad to inflate reported sales and financial results, including transfers through accounts in Panama. In 1987, Texas-based investor Elias Zinn acquired a significant stake in Crazy Eddie and, with support from management consultant Victor Palmieri, obtained a controlling interest through a hostile takeover. After the takeover, analysts concluded that the company's inventory was materially overstated, with published accounts later estimating a final shortfall of $80 million. Eight more stores were closed that August. Then, on September 5, Crazy Eddie stock was delisted from the NASDAQ. Less than a month later, on October 2, the executive board of Crazy Eddie to Chapter 7 on October 2, 1989, and the company liquidated. By the end of November 1989, the remaining eighteen stores had closed. Legal battles A former Crazy Eddie associate, Arnie Spindler, provided investigators with information about the company's financial practices, according to published accounts. In September 1989, the SEC charged Eddie Antar with securities fraud and illegal insider trading. In January 1990, a federal judge ordered Antar to repatriate funds transferred to Israel and to appear in court. After failing to appear for hearings, warrants were issued and assets were frozen, according to published accounts. ==Aftermath==

After the chain closed, multiple groups acquired or used the Crazy Eddie trademark for revival attempts. In 1990, a New Jersey-based investment group led by Alex Adjmi announced plans to reopen stores, but the effort did not proceed. In 1998, relatives of the Antar family reopened a store in Wayne, New Jersey and launched an online venture, crazyeddieonline.com. The business did not expand beyond the Wayne location and later closed. In the early 2000s, the brand was used for online retail operations under various owners. The trademark was later acquired by Trident Growth Fund, which attempted to auction the brand and the domain name crazyeddie.com in 2006. In 2009, businessman Jack Gemal began an online retail venture using the Crazy Eddie name and the website pricesareinsane.com. The business later ceased operations. As of 2018, the Crazy Eddie trademark was listed as abandoned. Jerry Carroll died in October 2020 after suffering from cardiac issues. Writer Gary Weiss, in doing research for a book he was writing about the rise and fall of Crazy Eddie, learned that Carroll's death had not been publicized, despite how ubiquitous a presence he was while serving as spokesman for Crazy Eddie. Eddie Antar died on September 10, 2016, at age 68. A funeral home in Ocean Township, New Jersey confirmed his death. Reports stated that Antar had liver cancer, though an official cause of death was not released. ==2022 book==

In August 2022, journalist Gary Weiss published Retail Gangster, a book about Crazy Eddie and the fraud committed by company leadership. ==Legacy==

Crazy Eddie has been referenced in film and television, including Splash, The Brave Little Toaster, Futurama, The Accountant, Russian Doll, and ''X-Men '97''. ==Notes==