H. Betti Industries was founded by Humbert Betti, in 1934, when the Greenwich Village restaurateur and tavern owner started operating jukeboxes in both his own business as well as other nearby taverns. Humbert was already something of an international success; the South American native was raised in Italy and emigrated as a young man to England, where he launched a successful chain of ice cream parlors and raised a family (including two daughters and four sons who worked in the business, Bert, Hugh, Eddie, and Louis) with his wife Catherine.
Once launched, the jukebox operation also thrived, and the family moved away from running the Village restaurant and bar to running jukeboxes and amusement equipment in others’ locations, mainly in New York City and New Jersey. At its height, the Betti route had over 7,000 pieces of equipment on the street.
