Tommy Van Scoy

Who is Tommy Van Scoy?

Tommy Van Scoy was the owner of a chain of diamond jewelry stores along in New England and the Mid-Atlantic States. He was also known for his odd radio commercials for his jewelry stores. He was also a championship boxer and an amateur pilot.

Van Scoy was born March 22, 1920, in Bear Creek, Pennsylvania. His mother died when he was 8 years old. In the 1930s his father a, former steelworker, had a difficult time finding work during the Great Depression. Young Van Scoy graduated from Coughlin High School and made money as a newspaper boy and as a shoeshiner. Van Scoy was a Golden Gloves boxer. In 1942 he joined the Army, where the flip of a coin ignited a new interest.

"While I was in the army, I went to San Antonio. I with two other officers and we flipped a coin to see who would pay for the movie. I lost and the coin landed on the crystal of my watch and broke it." He took the watch to a repair shop, and when the jeweler learned he was interested in the inner workings of the timepiece, the jeweler taught Van Scoy how to fix a watch.