Herb Goldstein, former Daily Racing Form columnist, dies

Herb Goldstein, a former columnist for Daily Racing Form who formed a racing partnership following his retirement from the paper, died on June 7 in an assisted-living facility in Boca Raton, Fla., according to family members. Goldstein, who was suffering from Parkinson’s disease and congestive heart failure, was 83.

Goldstein was a columnist alongside Joe Hirsch for much of the 1970s before retiring in the early 1980s to form Chaus Racing Stable with Bernie Chaus, the late founder of a company that was one of the largest producers of women’s clothing. The partnership raced the winners Mistaurian, Nastique, and Shaker Knit, who was humanely destroyed after he collided with a fallen horse in the 1990 Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Based on the New York circuit, Goldstein wrote columns at a time when racing was enjoying its heyday. His daughter Carol Lustig said that Goldstein took pride in getting to the backstretch early so that he could interview all those connected to a horse, including grooms and hotwalkers.

“You could find him just as often browsing the boxes giving winning tips to celebrities such as Jack Klugman and Cab Calloway as down in the mud getting details directly from the jockey as he dismounted,” Lustig wrote.

Prior to being appointed as a columnist, Goldstein worked on the copy desk at the Form.

In addition to his daughter Carol, Goldstein is survived by his wife, Claire, and another daughter, Amy. In lieu of flowers or other condolences, members of his family requested that contributions to the Parkinson’s Foundation be made in his name.