Joseph J. Smylie, 92, WWII vet and Phila. restaurateur

Joseph J. Smylie, 92, of Yardley, a retired restaurateur, real estate developer, and racehorse owner, died Thursday, May 13, at Pickering Manor in Newtown.

Mr. Smylie grew up in Fairmount and graduated from Northeast High School. His father was a Ukrainian immigrant, and the original family name was Smiejski.

During World War II, he served in the Marine Corps in the Pacific. He fought on Iwo Jima and was on Mount Suribachi in February 1945 when the Marines raised the U.S. flag there, said a son, Thomas.

His fellow Marines nicknamed him "Smiley" because of his affable personality, his son said.

Before shipping overseas, Mr. Smylie, whose family owned bars and restaurants in Philadelphia, put a down payment on a restaurant on Roosevelt Boulevard in Northeast Philadelphia.

After his discharge, he changed his last name to Smylie, after his wartime nickname, and opened Smylie's Restaurant.

Later, Mr. Smylie opened a bowling alley on Roosevelt Boulevard; it quickly expanded from 36 lanes to 48. In 1968, he tore down the restaurant and bought adjacent land to develop a five-story, 50,000-square-foot office building, the Smylie Times Building. He also built a three-story office building across the street. He operated the bowling alley until 1981.

For the last 50 years, Mr. Smylie owned Wind 'N Leaves horse farm in Jacobstown, N.J. "His passion was horse racing," his son said. "He would go out to the track on the farm early in the morning to watch the horses work out."

Two days after Mr. Smylie died, one of his horses won a race at PhiladelphiaPark.

In addition to his son, Mr. Smylie is survived by sons Jon, Joseph, Robert, Michael, and Timothy; daughters Mary Gibbons and Pamela Zinn; 22 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.

His wife of 36 years, Eleanor Jacobsen Smylie, died in 1998. He was also predeceased by former wives Margaret Smylie and Louise Smylie.

Friends may call from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the FitzGerald-Sommer Funeral Home, 17 S. Delaware Ave., Yardley. The funeral will be private. Burial will be in Newtown Cemetery, Newtown.

Donations may be made to Turning for Home, Box 300, Bensalem, Pa. 19020, the horse-retirement program founded by the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.