Charles Lazarus

Charles Philip Lazarus (October 4, 1923 – March 22, 2018) He opened his first store dedicated exclusively to toys, which he named Toys "R" Us, in 1957. in Washington, D.C., where he was raised.

Over the next several decades, Toys "R" Us, headed by Lazarus, expanded to suburban shopping areas across the US. Under Lazarus, the company created the Geoffrey the Giraffe store mascot and introduced the "I'm a Toys "R" Us kid" jingle. The company was considered a retail titan by the 1980s as it began to expand overseas with locations in Canada, Spain, and Singapore.

Death Lazarus died of respiratory failure at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City on March 22, 2018, at the age of 94. His death occurred just one day before Toys "R" Us began liquidation sales in the United States.