Getting Off the Daughter Track

When Irving Perlman, owner of Louis Perlman & Sons, died in October 1988, a local newspaper in western Massachusetts ran a story entitled, “The demise of the Perlman firm: All the Perlman men are dead.”

Jane Perlman, a Boston social worker, was furious when she read that sexist headline, but she realized the article's conclusion was probably correct. The scrap metal yard founded by her grandfather in 1912 was in danger of closing down for lack of a successor. Her uncle, Irving, was dead; her father, Irving's brother and partner, had died years before. Neither brother had had any sons. Jane returned to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, to solicit bids for the yard. But a funny thing happened: She fell in love with the business and decided to run it herself. Since then, Jane has managed Louis Perlman & Sons (which she has no intention of renaming) with a steady hand.

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