Who Is Sol Kerzner

Solomon Kerzner was born on August 23rd, 1935. He is best known for being a South African hotel and gambling tycoon. Born in Troyeville, Johannesburg, Kerzner was the youngest of four children. His parents were Jewish Russian immigrants, wishing to capitalize on the times with their entrepreneur spirit.

His family successfully started a hotel chain. After Kerzner graduated as a Chartered Accountant, he took over the running of the hotels and eventually went on to create the most successful hotel group in South Africa: Sun International. Sol Kerzner is currently Chairman of the Board of Kerzner International, which is located on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

Playing off of the Sun City resort success, Kerzner got involved in international hotel and gambling resorts; with his most notable role being the innovative developer behind the famous Atlantis resort in the Bahamas. Kerzner quickly scored a hit with this beautiful resort.

With the location prime and the population ready, Atlantis quickly became one of the world's most famous resorts. Kerzner's latest major development was suggested to be a proposed giant casino, which would be built on the site of the Millennium Dome in London. Though when the decision to give a Super Casino license was granted by the UK Government, the license went to Manchester instead, a proposal that Kerzner was reported to be involved in.

The newly world-famous Dubai has also caught the attentions of this entrepreneur. Apart from his company One&Only Resorts managing seven five-star luxury resorts in the Bahamas, Mexico, Mauritius, and the Maldives, a new Atlantis on the Palm in Dubai seems to be Kerzner's next step.

Through a joint venture with the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, he also developed and managed the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville. Though his company, TCA (Trading Cove Associates), relinquished management of the resort in 2002, Kerzner will still receive a 5% dividend on the gross revenue generated by the casino until 2014.

As one could expect from any casino and hotel mogul, a black cloud has often followed closely over Kerzner's head. During his role as a gambling resort developer, he has repeatedly been investigated for corruption in his practices, but none of the investigations resulted in a conviction.

In 1985, Sun City was a target of an anti-Apartheid rock album by a group of musicians who call themselves Artists United Against Apartheid. On October 11th, 2006, Kerzner's heir, Howard, died when the helicopter he was traveling in crashed near Sosua, in the Puerto Plata province of the Dominican Republic.

With his storied professional career spanning over 40 years, his personal life has been equally diverse. Kerzner has been married four times and currently married to Heather nee Murphy.