Former Cleveland Mayor Carl B. Stokes (right) "passes the torch" to Mayor-Elect Ralph J. Perk (left) in 1971.

Ralph Joseph Perk (January 19, 1914 – April 21, 1999) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the 52nd mayor of Cleveland, Ohio. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Carl Burton Stokes (June 21, 1927–April 3, 1996) was an American politician of the Democratic party who served as the 51st mayor of Cleveland, Ohio. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... January 19 is the 19th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 111th day of the year (112th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party) [1], is one of the two major political parties in the United States. ... The Mayor of Cleveland is the chief executive of the citys government. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Official language(s) None Capital Columbus Largest city Columbus Largest metro area Cleveland Area  Ranked 34th  - Total 44,825 sq mi (116,096 km²)  - Width 220 miles (355 km)  - Length 220 miles (355 km)  - % water 8. ...

Perk served five terms on Cleveland City Council from the city's Ward 13. In 1962, Perk was elected auditor of Cuyahoga County, the first Republican to win countywide office in a half century. He was re-elected in 1966 and again in 1970. In 1969, Perk ran for mayor of Cleveland and was defeated in the general election. In 1971, after two unsuccessful attempts, Perk won the Republican nomination for the office of mayor. He defeated future mayor, governor, and current U.S. Senator George Voinovich, then a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, in the primary election. Perk went on to win the general election and was reelected in 1973 and 1975. In 1977, however, Perk suffered an upset defeat in the non-partisan primary election for mayor. Cleveland City Hall The Cleveland City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Cleveland in Ohio. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Audit can refer to: Telecommunication audit Financial audit Performance audit Completion of a course of study for which no assessment is completed or grade awarded; especially audit is awarded to those who have elected not to receive a letter grade for a course in which letter grades typically awarded. ... Cuyahoga County is a county located in the state of Ohio. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... The Mayor of Cleveland is the chief executive of the citys government. ... A general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are up for election. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... George Victor Voinovich (born July 15, 1936) is an American politician of the Republican Party. ... Ohio has a bicameral legislature, the Ohio General Assembly, consisting a House of Representatives and Senate (the Ohio State Senate), based on its constitution of 1851. ... Year 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1973 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ...

As mayor, Perk became the subject of national ridicule when he accidentally set his hair on fire while he attempted to use a welder's torch to cut a ribbon at a campaign event. Perk was again publicly humiliated after suggesting that a study on pornography ought to be conducted by municipal sanitation workers. Perk also banned the sale of Playboy Magazine at Cleveland Hopkins Airport, causing even more ridicule to fall upon him. Perk's wife, Lucille, achieved notoriety when she rejected an invitation from the First Lady Pat Nixon to an event at the White House in order to attend her regular bowling night. Later, Perk explained his wife's comment to mean that she was unable to attend because the invitation had come too late and she was unable to prepare for travel. Perk was rumored to say, "tell them it's your bowling night." Though the remark brought howls of laughter, it endeared the Perks to their ethnic base. Porn redirects here. ... First Lady Laura Bush and former first ladies, from left, Rosalynn Carter, Sen. ... Thelma Catherine Pat Ryan Nixon (March 16, 1912 – June 22, 1993) was the wife of former President Richard Nixon and the First Lady of the United States of America from 1969 to 1974. ... For other uses, see White House (disambiguation). ...

As mayor, Perk had a reputation of being tough with city employee labor unions. One time, the fire fighters union instigated a protest by closing City Hall one day by standing on the front steps of the building and allowing only the mail and their political allies to gain access. The ploy worked, and the fire fighters received what they were negotiating.

In 1974, Perk won the Republican nomination for the United States Senate seat formerly held by William B. Saxbe, who had resigned to accept the appointment to the office of United States Attorney General. Perk, however, was defeated soundly by Democrat John Herschel Glenn, Jr. Perk had stated that he was counting on running against the incumbent senator, Howard M. Metzenbaum, who had been recently appointed to the seat by then Governor John J. Gilligan. When Metzenbaum lost the primary to Glenn (The two were later Senate colleagues for many years.), Perk expressed doubt that he could win the election, particularly in the Democrats year of Watergate. Federal courts Supreme Court Chief Justice Associate Justices Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Politics Portal      The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral United States Congress, the... William Bart Saxbe (born June 24, 1916) was an American politician of the Republican Party, who served as a U.S. Senator from Ohio and as U.S. Attorney General under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald R. Ford. ... Seal of the United States Department of Justice The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice (see 28 U.S.C. Â§ 503) concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. ... The Democratic Party is one of two major political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. ... For other persons named John Glenn, see John Glenn (disambiguation). ... For the ecclesiastical office, see Incumbent (ecclesiastical). ... Howard Morton Metzenbaum (born June 4, 1917) is an American politician who served for almost 20 years as a Democrat in the U.S. Senate (1976 - 1995). ... John Joyce Jack Gilligan (born March 22, 1921) is a Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Ohio who served as its 62nd governor. ... The Watergate building. ...

Perk also appointed Richard Eberling in 1973 to chair a committee to redecorate the mayor's office in City Hall, a move that proved unpopular with numerous sources. In 1974, the Cleveland Plain Dealer exposed Eberling's record as a petty criminal in a front-page story; Perk defended Eberling, and approved the financing of project until the amount significantly over-reached the budgeted amount. Eberling's lover, Obie Henderson was hired as Perk's personal secretary. Eberling was later found guilty in the death of Ethel M. Durkin, a Cleveland area widow; he also linked himself to the Marilyn Sheppard murder in Bay Village, in 1954. Circumstantial evidence also links Eberling to at least four other murders committed over a period from 1946 to 1970 that involved his stepfather, his purported girlfriend, and both of Mrs. Durkin's sisters. Rocky River Ohio mug shot of Richard Eberling,dated 1959 Richard George Eberling (December 8, 1929 - July 25, 1998) was a petty thief and convicted murderer who attempted to implicate himself in the murder of Marilyn Sheppard, wife of Dr. Sam Sheppard. ... Year 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1973 Gregorian calendar. ... The Plain Dealer is the major daily newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio. ... Samuel Holmes Sheppard, D.O. (1923 – April 6, 1970) was an American osteopathic physician [1] involved in a famous and controversial murder trial when he was convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife, Marilyn Sheppard. ... Bay Village is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. ... Year 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Perk died in Westlake, Ohio, in 1999. Location in Ohio Coordinates: Country United States State Ohio County Cuyahoga Dover Township first settled 1810 [2] Dover Village incorporated 1911 [2] City of Westlake incorporated 1957 [2] Government  - Mayor-council Dennis M. Clough [1]  - Mayor Area  - City  15. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ...

Perk's son, Ralph J. Perk, Jr., served as a municipal court judge in Cleveland from 1989 to 2003. Another son, Thomas Perk, is a council member in the village of Valley View in addition to being a fire fighter. Yet another son, Kenneth Perk, is a member of the Cuyahoga Heights Board of Education. Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Valley View is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. ...

References

• The Encyclopedia Of Cleveland History by Cleveland Bicentennial Commission (Cleveland, Ohio), David D. Van Tassel (Editor), and John J. Grabowski (Editor) ISBN 0-253-33056-4