Sadly, Sir Solomon “Sol” Kerzner (1935-2020), “The Sun King”, passed away from cancer on March 21st 2020 at the age of 84, at his Leeukoppie Estate in Cape Town, South Africa. By: Niall Murray
Sol Kerzner was born on 23rd of August 1935 in Doornfontein, a modest suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa. Born to immigrant Jewish parents Morris and Bertha Kerzner from Lithuania, Sol was the youngest of four children, and the only son.
One of Sol’s biggest accomplishments began in 1978 when he took a helicopter trip over the
Pilanesberg, in South Africa and saw the dormant volcanic land and envisioned what would become Sun City. In 1979, once a gaming licence was negotiated and approved by the tribal council of Bophuthatswana, Southern Sun’s, “pleasure paradise in the Pilanesberg” and most ambitious resort in Africa, Sun City commenced.
Every element of Sun City was built with exacting attention to detail. On the opening weekend 15,000 people swarmed the extraordinary resort that encapsulated a hedonistic spirit of glamour, escapism and decadence and which injected real imagination into South Africa’s hospitality industry for the first time.
Sun City pushed the boundaries and strove to constantly exceed over-indulged guests wildest expectations.
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