KURDZIEL, AUGUST JOSEPH "GUS" (2 Aug. 1902-30 April 1993) was active in Cleveland's Polish-American Community as publisher of THE POLISH DAILY NEWS (Wiadomosci Codzienne). He was also the youngest person to serve as Cleveland's director of public parks and properties.
Born in Cleveland to Paul and Mary (Dedo) Kurdziel, August attended school in Cleveland, Alliance School in Cambridge Springs, PA., and Adelbert College at WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY.
Kurdziel left WRU in 1921 to become a writer at The Polish Daily News. and by 1933, its advertising manager The News was founded by his father as a weekly in 1912 and, in 1915, had become Cleveland's only Polish language daily. Kurdziel became general manager and publisher after his father's death in 1940.
Under Kurdziel The Polish Daily News was a full-service daily sold in shops and stores. Its largest circulation was in the Broadway-E.55th St. area, Garfield Heights, Brooklyn, Parma and Lakewood. Kurdziel was forced to close the paper in 1966 due to costs and difficulty in recruiting a bilingual staff.
In 1933 Mayor HARRY DAVIS appointed Kurdziel director of parks and public properties, which included Public Auditorium, Public Hall, Municipal Stadium, and Hopkins Airport. Throughout his career Kurdziel remained active in Cleveland's Polish-American community. He was friend and mentor to many judges and politicians, including Blanche Krupansky and former Cleveland Mayor RALPH PERK. Kurdziel belonged to the Polish National Alliance and the Cleveland Society of Poles.
Kurdziel married Pauline Lacki in 1924. They had a son, Henry. Kurdziel, a Roman Catholic, is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery.