Laurence Tisch - Biography

Laurence Alan "Larry" Tisch (March 5, 1923—November 15, 2003) was an American businessman, Wall Street investor and self-made billionaire. He was the CEO of CBS television network from 1986 to 1995. With his brother Bob Tisch, he was part owner of the Loews Corporation.

Tisch served as chairman of the board of trustees at New York University from 1978 to 1998, overseeing a $1 billion capital campaign and major improvements in the university. Tisch was also a former president of the United Jewish Appeal of New York.

Early life and career

Tisch was born March 5, 1923 in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from New York University when he was just 18 and received a Wharton MBA in industrial management by 20. Just five years out of NYU he made his first investment, purchasing a 300-room winter resort in Lakewood, New Jersey. Two years later, his brother Bob joined him in the business, launching a lifelong partnership between the pair.

As the first hotel took off, the Tisch brothers bought hotels in Atlantic City and the Catskills. Their hotel empire continued to expand, generating millions of dollars, and the Tisch brothers began investing in Loews Theaters.

Career at Loews

In 1961, Tisch gained control of Loews and became its co-chairman with his brother. The pair soon diversified the business, successfully venturing into a variety of areas. After he and his brother took over Loews, the company moved in a variety of directions. Loews acquired Lorillard, a tobacco company, and the Bulova Watch Company Through acquisitions, Tisch built Loews' revenues from $100 million in 1970 to more than $3 billion by a decade later.

At Loews, Tisch oversaw a financial corporation with assets of over $70 billion, including a hotel chain, a tobacco company (Lorillard), an insurance firm (CNA Financial), and an offshore drilling company. In 2002, the year before Larry Tisch's death, the corporation had revenues of more than $17 billion and assets of more than $70 billion.

Career at CBS

In 1986, when CBS Inc. was the target of several hostile takeover attempts, Tisch spent $800 million for a 24.9% stake of the company. With the support of company patriarch William S. Paley, he was named the company's president and CEO.

The Tisch era at CBS was marked by relentless cost-cutting. CBS divested itself of non-broadcast assets including Holt, Rinehart and Winston (publishers) for $500M, and the CBS Music Group, which was sold to Sony for $2 billion. Westinghouse Electric bought CBS in 1995 for an estimated $5.4 billion, of which Tisch's ownership netted him $2 billion.

Philanthrophy

Tisch was also known for his philanthropy, with major donations to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York University, the NYU Medical Center and the Wildlife Conservation Society. His $4.5 million gift to the latter created the Tisch Children's Zoo in Central Park.

Family

He married Wilma "Billie" Stein in 1948; they had four sons.

Honors

NYU's Tisch School of the Arts is named in his honor.

Harvard Professorship

The professorship for history and economics in Harvard University is named after him. The current Laurence A. Tisch professor is Niall Ferguson, an acclaimed Scottish economic historian.

Death

Laurence Tisch died of gastroesophageal cancer, aged 80, in 2003. He was interred at Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.

<references />

External links

• TV Museum archive
• Tisch obit in USA Today