He was, by all accounts, a respected and wealthy man with extensive business interests in many sectors across southern Africa.
In March 1970 he made history by offering the highest price ever offered for property by public auction when he purchased the Jagger-Mosenthal building in Johannesburg for just over R1.9 million.
That was just two years after he built the President Hotel in the same city, a 260-room property that cost R7.5 million to construct.
Yet mention the name Bernard Glazer nowadays and nobody bats an eyelid.
Isn't he that guy that owns Manchester United? was one reply received. No, that 'guy' is Malcolm Glazer, who is also the owner of US football team Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
And as interesting as the patron of Manchester United is, Bernard Glazer's rise to success, and his demise in 1984, holds promise of a story that could be even more intriguing.
Reports indicate that Glazer and his brother, Sam, built up a considerable number of investments that began in the early 1950's with acquisitions of Tati Co and The Bechuanaland Exploration Company and even included a controlling bid for Lonrho later in the same decade.
Their portfolio also included mineral interests across vast areas of Zambia, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Sam Glazer passed away in 1959 and Bernard continued overseeing their holdings until his death on 17 July 1984, which one source has described as occurring 'under unusual circumstances'.
Little else appears to have been extensively reported on the legacy created by the Glazers and, more importantly, what happened to their assets and investments following Bernard Glazer's death.
Early investigations indicate that influence of these brothers on the South African and international markets may in fact have been far more profound than anyone would believe.
Perhaps it is time to resurrect a more complete view of Bernard's story and discover what happened to the empire this man built.