# Sam Farber > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sam_Farber > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sam_Farber.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Farber > Source revision: 1342899591 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|American businessman}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2019}} {{Infobox person | name = Sam Farber | image = | caption = | birth_date = November 16, 1924 | birth_place = [New York City](/source/New_York_City) | birth_name = | death_date = June 16, 2013 | death_place = | education = B.A. [Harvard University](/source/Harvard_University) | occupation = Businessman | known_for = | children = 4 | spouse = Joan Levine (divorced)
Betsey Wells Kriegsman | father = | family = | website = }} '''Samuel Farber''' (November 16, 1924 – June 16, 2013) was an American [industrial designer](/source/industrial_designer) and businessman. Farber and his son, John Farber, co-founded [OXO](/source/OXO_(kitchen_utensils_brand)), a manufacturer of [kitchen utensil](/source/kitchen_utensil)s and [housewares](/source/housewares).{{cite news|title=Samuel Farber, developer of kitchen utensils, dies at 88 |url=http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2013/06/22/Samuel-Farber-developer-of-kitchen-utensils-dies-at-88/UPI-69701371918952/ |work=[United Press International](/source/United_Press_International) |date=June 22, 2013 |accessdate=6 July 2013}}{{cite news|first=Margalit|last=Fox|title=Sam Farber, Creator of Oxo Utensils, Dies at 88 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/22/business/sam-farber-creator-of-oxo-utensils-dies-at-88.html |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date=June 21, 2013 |accessdate=6 July 2013}} Farber is credited with revolutionizing the kitchen utensil industry by developing and introducing a line of utensils with plastic-coated black handles through OXO. While more expensive than traditional utensils, the new soft, black handled utensils proved to be a success with consumers. ==Early life== Sam Farber was born on November 16, 1924, in New York City, though he was raised in nearby [Yonkers, New York](/source/Yonkers%2C_New_York), the son of Rose (née Winograd) and Louis Farber.{{Cite news|first= |last= |authorlink= |title= Louis Farber of Hallandale, Fla., a founder and former president of the Sheffield Silver Company and Farber Brothers in New York City, died Sunday in White Plains Hospital. He was 90 years old. |newspaper=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|date=September 7, 1976 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/07/archives/louis-farber.html |via=}} His father founded the Sheffield Silver Company and Farber Brothers, which sold serving ware; and served as the president of the Jewish Community Center of Yonkers. He had one brother, Israel Farber. His uncle, Simon Farber, founded [Farberware](/source/Farberware), which manufactures kitchen appliances and cookware. Farber served in North Africa and [Turkey](/source/Turkey) during [World War II](/source/World_War_II) as a member of the [Army Air Forces](/source/Army_Air_Forces). He received a [bachelor's degree](/source/bachelor's_degree) in economics from [Harvard University](/source/Harvard_University) in 1946. ==Career== ===Copco=== In 1960, Farber founded Copco, which manufactured [enamel-coated](/source/Vitreous_enamel), [cast iron](/source/cast_iron) [cookware](/source/cookware). He sold Copco in 1982, largely retiring from the industry at the time of the sale. ===OXO=== Farber founded OXO as a result of improvements he made to an everyday [vegetable peeler](/source/vegetable_peeler). While vacationing in a rented home in [southern France](/source/southern_France), his wife, Betsy Farber, who suffered from [arthritis](/source/arthritis), was trying to peel apples, which proved difficult using a peeler with a standard design. The difficulties presented by available peelers (and their handles) sparked an idea for Sam for a more [inclusive design](/source/inclusive_design). He and his son, John, hired [Smart Design](/source/Smart_Design), an [industrial design](/source/industrial_design) firm based in New York City, with whom they created a new product line of kitchen utensils fitted with soft plastic-coated black handles, which made them easier to hold and utilize, and more aesthetically appealing than other utensils.Cagan, J., and Vogel, C. (2002) ''Creating Breakthrough Products'', Prentice-Hall, Inc. pp. 14–18. Farber unveiled the new line at the Gourmet Products Show in San Francisco, California, in 1990. He named his company "OXO" for its "backward, upside-down and vertical graphic [symmetry](/source/symmetry)." Farber's OXO products were more expensive than competitors', but the line proved a hit with consumers, who were willing to pay more for the new, easier-to-use utensils. The Farber family sold [OXO](/source/OXO_(kitchen_utensils_brand)) to General Housewares Corporation in 1992. OXO is currently owned by Helen of Troy Limited, as of 2013. ===Mario Batali products=== Sam and John Farber later created a line of products sold by chef [Mario Batali](/source/Mario_Batali). ===Boards=== An art collector, Farber served on the board of directors for the [American Folk Art Museum](/source/American_Folk_Art_Museum) in [Manhattan](/source/Manhattan). ==Personal life== Farber was a longtime resident of Manhattan but lived in [Lexington, Massachusetts](/source/Lexington%2C_Massachusetts), during his later years. Farber was married twice. His first marriage to Joan Levine{{Cite magazine|first= |last= |authorlink= |title= obituaries - Sam Farber - IIT Institute of Design Board of Overseers |page=42|magazine=[Illinois Institute of Technology](/source/Illinois_Institute_of_Technology) Magazine|date=Fall 2013 |url= https://magazine.iit.edu/sites/magazine/files/field_uploads/issue/pdfs/fall-2013.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}} ended in divorce;{{Cite news|first= |last= |authorlink= |title= Mrs. Kriegsman, Architect, Is Wed |newspaper=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|date=March 17, 1985 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/17/style/mrs-kriegsmanarchitect-is-wed.html |via=}} they had two sons, John Farber (born c. 1976, married in 1996 to Wendyll Brown){{Cite news|first=Lois Smith |last=Brady |authorlink= |title= VOWS; Wendyll Brown and John Farber |newspaper=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|date=February 18, 1996 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/18/style/vows-wendyll-brown-and-john-farber.html |via=}} and Thomas Farber, a criminal court judge in New York. In 1985, he married Betsey Wells Kriegsman, an architect, in a nondenominational ceremony in New York City; he has two stepchildren from her previous marriage, Mark Kriegsman and Sue Kriegsman. ==Death== Farber died in [East Meadow, New York](/source/East_Meadow%2C_New_York) of complications from a fall on June 16, 2013, at the age of 88. ==References== {{reflist}} {{authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Farber, Sam}} Category:1924 births Category:2013 deaths Category:American industrial designers Category:American people of Jewish descent Category:American company founders Category:Harvard College alumni Category:United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Category:Businesspeople from Lexington, Massachusetts Category:Businesspeople from Manhattan Category:People from Yonkers, New York Category:Deaths from falls --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sam Farber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Farber) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Farber?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.