Buddy Jacobson on the cover of SOUTH FLORIDA magazine September 2025

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FOUNDER | Jay ShapiroLuxury Chamber Media Group jay@southflorida.in

Fashion Editor | Juliana LaBonte juliana@southflorida.in

Travel Editor | Christina Ricci

Business Editor | Cindy Ragan

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Joe Freer, Frank LoRe Jr, Roger Craft

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Ilmar Saar - Robert Bauman

ADVERTISING

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Jason M. Settlemoir is COO/GM of New Meadowlands Racetrack LLC and Winners Bayonne OTW in New Jersey, and serves as vice president of racing, simulcast, and sponsorship for American Racing and Entertainment (Tioga Downs and Vernon Downs) He is also simulcast and sponsorship director for the Little Brown Jug, announcer in his home state of Ohio, USTA director, Grand Circuit director, and a member of the Little Brown Jug Society.

An active Standardbred owner, Settlemoir has been part of many successful horses, including world champion trotting mare Perfect Alliance and Ohio Sire Stake champion Drunk On Your Love His contributions to the sport have earned him major recognition, including the Lew Barasch Breakthrough Award, the USHWA “Good Guy” Award, the President’s Award, and the prestigious Stanley Bergstein Proximity Award in 2023.

Beyond racing, he has supported organizations such as Toys for Tots, Make-A-Wish, Wounded Warriors Ranch, and the Red Cross A proud Ohio native, he follows Buckeye sports and the Cleveland Browns, enjoys time with family and friends, and loves fishing the ocean He lives in Allentown, N J with his son Travis

Jason Settlemoir - GM of Meadowlands (Jay Shapiro on right)

Jay Shapiro to Produce “Buddy Jacobson The Movie” based

Publisher Jay Shapiro has announced the production of a new film chronicling the controversial life of Buddy Jacobson once the most successful racehorse trainer in the United States and a flamboyant figure in 1970s Manhattan nightlife. Shapiro’s connection to the story is personal. His mother, Dawn Eve, was one of Buddy Jacobson’s fashion models in New York during the height of Jacobson’s modeling agency years. At one point, Dawn was even offered the lead supporting role in Taxi Driver alongside Robert De Niro. Recently, in a twist of fate, Shapiro took a maternal DNA test and discovered that famed racing mogul Jeffrey Gural is a close cousin match Shapiro was stunned to learn that Gural was once a business associate of Jacobson’s in the horse racing world

Further deepening the synchronicity, Shapiro had a chance encounter with Robert, a long-time friend of Jacobson and a respected executive in the racing industry, at Matteo’s Trattoria in Hallandale Beach “It was more than coincidence it felt like a calling,” said Shapiro “Meeting Robert and finding out about Jeffrey Gural being family solidified my decision to bring Buddy’s story to the screen ”

The action / drama / mafia film will explore Jacobson’s meteoric rise from Brooklyn stable boy to real estate millionaire and modeling agent, his notorious 1980 trial for the murder of John Tupper, and his daring escape from the Brooklyn House of Detention events that captivated national headlines and shook the city’s elite It will also probe the controversial conviction, alleged prosecutorial suppression of evidence, and the prison interviews where Jacobson, battling cancer, proclaimed his innocence until his last breath Shapiro’s vision is not to glorify or vilify Jacobson, but to portray him as the complex, driven, and charismatic figure he was flawed, brilliant, and unforgettable. “This isn’t just true crime,” Shapiro explains. “It’s about the American dream, ego, love, betrayal, and the thin line between genius and madness.”

Casting and production dates will be announced very soon at: www.BuddyJacobsonMovie.com

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