Murray Handwerker, 89, brought Nathan’s Famous to Oceanside

Murray Handwerker, a Lawrence native and the former president of Nathan’s Famous, the hot dog fast-food chain based in Coney Island, died on May 14 at his home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. He was 89.

Five years before he was born in Brooklyn on July 25, 1921, his parents, Nathan and Ida, opened the original Nathan’s Famous at Coney Island. The hot dog stand was patronized by the famous and infamous as actor Cary Grant, entertainer Eddie Cantor and gangster Al Capone were regular customers. In 1939, Nathan’s Famous received international exposure as President Franklin D. Roosevelt served the hot dogs to the King and Queen of England.

“Murray initiated the transformation of the company from a Coney Island tradition into a powerful, national chain,” said Wayne Norbitz, the current president and COO of Nathan’s Famous, Inc., in a statement. “His legacy can be seen throughout our country, every day, as people enjoy the great hot dogs and French fries that he was so proud of.”

After graduating from New York University in 1947, Handwerker went to work for his parents and in 1958 revitalized the restaurant, Roadside Rest of Oceanside, and transformed it into the first Nathan’s Famous location outside of Coney Island. Generations of South Shore high school students were said to have flocked to the Long Beach Road hot dog joint after football games.

“I loved that Nathan’s — it’s still one of my first stops when I come back to New York,” said David Rubin, who grew up in Harbor Isle and now lives in California. “I used to see puppet shows there as a kid, and remember having to wait on separate lines for the different types of food. Having an aunt and uncle who lived across from the original in Coney Island was an incredible treat as a kid. So when we moved to Island Park in 1971 and there was a huge Nathan’s in the next town, you can imagine how exciting that was.”

The Nathan’s of the 60s and 70s was a very different place than it is today. It occupied not just the restaurant space that’s there now, but the entire shopping center behind it was a covered picnic area were people would not only eat, but take in shows. Groups on Facebook have been dedicated to the establishment.