Hard work and the desire to lend a helping hand. I.D. Blumenthal’s life was a testament to both. Born in New York City in 1894, and raised in Savannah, Georgia, he was the eldest child of Samuel and Fannie Blumenthal, who immigrated from Lithuania and the Ukraine to America to escape poverty and religious persecution. Samuel and Fannie’s work ethic, their commitment to civic affairs, and their tolerance for all faiths — though they, themselves were Orthodox Jews — left an indelible impression on their son.

After studying forestry at the University of Georgia, I.D. served in the Army in World War I before returning to Savannah where he entered into a five-year partnership with his father at the Blumenthal Five and Dime. As the store prospered, I.D. honed his marketing skills and innate sales abilities.

In 1924, he struck out on his own as a traveling salesman. With scarcely enough in his pocket to get him from one town to the next, I.D. was passing through Charlotte, North Carolina, when his car experienced a leaky radiator. Taking it to a tinsmith by the name of G. G. Ray, he was astounded when the man sealed the leak by pouring a powder into the radiator. According to Mr. Ray, the powder known as Solder Seal was an invention of his own making, but no longer available due to his company’s inability to market it.

So certain was he that Solder Seal could be marketed effectively, I.D. convinced Mr. Ray to enter into a partnership with him. In the years that followed, I.D. took the product on the road, demonstrated it in town squares, at corner gas stations, anywhere he might attract a group of people. Before long, the groups multiplied into crowds. The orders multiplied from a few individual tubes to major shipments bound for automotive repair companies.

At Radiator Specialty Company, the division Mr. Ray created expressly for the manufacture of Solder Seal, profits were multiplying as well. Realizing that continued growth demanded more than one item, I.D., who was promoted to sales manager began expanding Radiator Specialty’s product line. The next logical step was to create a powder capable of stopping leaks in heating boilers in apartments and factories. Solder Seal Boiler Repair joined the ever growing ranks of Solder Seal products, including Radiator Anti-Rust, Powder Block Seal, and Liquid Radiator Repair.

In 1933, I.D. acquired the Golden State Rubber Mills in Los Angeles, a move that brought Golden State Faucet Washers and Triple Seal Tank Balls into the fold. By 1934, I.D. was sole owner of Radiator Specialty Company, and in 1937 moved its headquarters into a renovated cotton mill. During World War II, the company focused its entire production towards the war effort. Almost all B-24’s and B-25’s contained rubber parts made by Radiator Specialty.

The postwar years brought continued growth. When the California rubber plant was brought to the Carolinas, so was I.D.’s brother, Herman, who had managed the Los Angeles facility. It was then that Radiator Specialty began to assume the mantle of a family-owned business, with both brothers endeavoring to ensure its continued success. An association with Gunk Laboratories, construction of a new rubber mill, and completion of a manufacturing plant in Toronto, Canada, all contributed to the company’s increased growth. Today, Alan Blumenthal serves as Chairman of the board.

From humble beginnings, Radiator Specialty Company has evolved into a major aftermarket chemicals supplier.

I.D. Blumenthal’s vision wasn’t limited to corporate earnings.  Like his father before him, he devoted himself to brotherhood as diligently as he did to business affairs.  With Herman helping with the day-to-day operations of Radiator Specialty, I. D. was able to focus his attention on a partnership of a different sort—a partnership with people, not only in the city he loved, but throughout the Carolinas and the South.