Saul Goldsmith

Goldsmith was born in 1911 in Auckland. His parents were Joseph Isaac Goldsmith and Deborah Goldsmith (née Cohen).{{cite book |title=Who's Who in New Zealand, 1978 |editor-last=Traue |editor-first=James Edward |editor-link=Jim Traue |year=1978 |edition=11th |publisher=Reed Publishing |location=Wellington | page=124}} Goldsmith received his education at Brooklyn School and at Wellington College.{{cite book |last = Gustafson |first = Barry |author-link = Barry Gustafson |title = The First 50 Years : A History of the New Zealand National Party |year = 1986 |publisher = Reed Methuen |location = Auckland |isbn = 0-474-00177-6 | pages=364f}} He was also the cousin of Auckland Mayor Dove-Myer Robinson.{{cite news |title=Saul - a loser's loser |last=Watts |first=Barrie | work=The Dominion |date=15 October 1971 }}

In the 1920s he started work as a messenger-clerk before leaving to start his own business.{{cite news |last=Moran |first=Paul |title=Lone loser won't give up lifelong battle |work=The Dominion |date=14 November 1980 }} In 1930, he founded the General Agencies Company and was its managing director; the company concerned itself with importing goods. By 1980 the company imported over two thousand product lines, the majority tobacconist lines.

Goldsmith was for many years an executive member of the Brooklyn Municipal Electors Association. He was also a member of the Wellington Travel Club and the Brooklyn Progressive Association. He was a foundation member of the Independent United Action Group and led ten candidates—including himself—in the 1959 Wellington City Council election; none of the group were elected.{{cite report |last=James |first=T. W. |date=30 November 1959 |title=Declaration of Election Results |publisher=Wellington City Council}} In the 1962 Wellington City mayoral election, Goldsmith was one of three mayoral candidates, and came a distant last.{{cite report |last=James |first=T.W. |date=23 October 1962 |title=Declaration of Election Results |publisher=Wellington City Council}} Goldsmith stood out as a proponent of the retention of the Wellington tramway system. Later, he was the president of the Wellington Municipal Electors Association. Despite never winning office he found alternative ways to bring about change. One such occasion was when he was concerned by the under-utilisation of land in Jam Tin Gully, a former landfill. Goldsmith rang the wives of city councillors and asked that they discuss the matter with their husbands. Soon afterwards the area was designated the site of the soon to be to be constructed Wellington Show Buildings.

His status as a lively perennial candidate in Wellington made him his own brand of local celebrity. A reporter for The Dominion newspaper said in 1971 Goldsmith was a "...political novelty. He is Wellington's best known and perennial loser. In the last 14 years he has been defeated in two parliamentary, five City Council and two mayoral elections. Plus one council by-election and lost more causes than Don Quixote ever dreamed of". His notoriety was such that he was the subject of an entire chapter in a social studies textbook used in New Zealand schools in the 1970s. Published by Farland and McLeod, the chapter was titled the "Lone Campaigner", and discussed Goldsmith's campaigns on local issues and his methods of electioneering and advocacy. Quoted examples were his "save the trams" campaign and his disputes with the Ministry of Transport over the accuracy of its microwave speed detectors.

In 1936, Goldsmith was a foundation member of the National Party. He was involved in local political affairs in Wellington, and was active in the {{NZ electorate link|Karori}} and {{NZ electorate link|Island Bay}} electorates. He stood in the Island Bay electorate for National in the {{NZ election link year|1957}} and {{NZ election link|1966}}s. The death of Norman Kirk caused the 1974 Sydenham by-election and the National Party decided not to stand a candidate, but Goldsmith decided to stand as an independent National candidate; he came a distant fourth in the by-election.{{cite book |last= Norton |first= Clifford |title= New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science |year= 1988 |publisher= Victoria University of Wellington |location= Wellington |isbn= 0-475-11200-8 | page=351}} As Goldsmith had gone directly against the decision of the party's dominion executive, party president George Chapman recommended the suspension of his membership. After discussions with the Canterbury-Westland division of the party it was felt that it was no longer necessary to suspend Goldsmith and that public announcements that he was neither an official candidate nor party endorsed had made the party's stance clear to the public.{{cite news |title=Party Rebel Not Dropped |work=The New Zealand Herald |date=17 October 1974 |page=18 }} Political historian Barry Gustafson described him as "a colourful character and an entertaining platform speaker". One famed instance at a National Party conference in Dunedin, Goldsmith gave a hilarious speech to the delegates which left them all in hysterics.

In the 1979 Queen's Birthday Honours, Goldsmith was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, for services to the community.{{London Gazette |issue=47871 |date=16 June 1979 |page=29 |supp=3}} His mother had received the same honour in the 1947 New Year Honours, for her services in connection with patriotic and social welfare movements during and after World War II.{{London Gazette |issue=37836 |date=1 January 1947 |page=32 |supp=2 |nolink=yes}}

Goldsmith's parents were "chess enthusiasts".{{cite book |last=Goldman |first=Lazarus Morris |date=1958 |title=The History of the Jews in New Zealand |url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-GolHist-t1-body1-d30.html |location=Wellington |publisher=Reed Publishing |page=214}} Goldsmith himself also played chess and joined the committee of the Wellington Chess League at age 23; his father was the inaugural president of the club.{{cite news |title=Chess |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19340305.2.35?query=%22A.%20S.%20Goldsmith%22 | work=The Evening Post |volume=C | issue=54 |date=5 March 1934 |access-date=6 January 2017 | page=5}} Goldsmith contested chess championships in both New Zealand and Australia. He played at the New Zealand championships in 1936 Auckland,{{cite news |title=Chess Tourney |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AS19361226.2.148?query=%22A.%20S.%20Goldsmith%22 | work=Auckland Star |volume=LXVII | issue=306 |date=26 December 1936 |access-date=6 January 2017 | page=11}} and in 1939 in Wellington.{{cite news |title=Chess |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19391228.2.15?query=%22A.%20S.%20Goldsmith%22 | work=The Evening Post |volume=CXXVIII | issue=154 |date=28 December 1939 |access-date=6 January 2017 | page=5}} When Goldsmith's brother Lionel was killed in Europe during World War II, his parents donated the Goldsmith Chess Trophy in his memory.

From 1948 to 1950, Goldsmith travelled through the United States and Canada and lectured on New Zealand. He was a board member of the Wellington Tramway Museum, and was the organisation's president from 1969 to 1974. In 1974, he was president of the Kelburn Cable Car Preservation Society.

Goldsmith died in 1988.{{cite web |url=http://natlib.govt.nz/items?i[subject]=Goldsmith%2C+Abraham+Saul%2C+1911-1988 |title=Showing results 1–2 of 2 for Goldsmith, Abraham Saul, 1911–1988 |author= |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |access-date=6 January 2017}} On 7 November, he was buried in the Jewish section of Karori Cemetery{{cite web |url=http://wellington.govt.nz/services/community-and-culture/cemeteries/cemeteries-search/details?id=20227&serviceType=Burial |title=Details |publisher=Wellington City Council |access-date=6 January 2017}} next to his mother.{{cite web |url=http://wellington.govt.nz/services/community-and-culture/cemeteries/cemeteries-search/details?id=20228&serviceType=Burial |title=Details |publisher=Wellington City Council |access-date=6 January 2017}}

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Category:1911 births

Category:1988 deaths

Category:People educated at Wellington College, Wellington

Category:Unsuccessful candidates in the 1957 New Zealand general election

Category:Unsuccessful candidates in the 1966 New Zealand general election

Category:New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire

Category:Burials at Karori Cemetery

Category:New Zealand chess players

Category:Jewish New Zealand politicians

Category:New Zealand National Party politicians

Category:20th-century chess players