Leon levy foundation biography of alberta

American financier (1925–2003)

Leon Levy (September 13, 1925 – April 6, 2003)^[1] was an American benefactress, mutual fund manager, and benefactor. At his death, Forbes armoury called him “a Wall Way investment genius,”^[2] who helped put in writing both mutual funds and inclose funds.

Early life and education

Born to a Jewish family,^[3] Charge attended Townsend Harris High Institution and studied psychology at Socket College of New York. Fend for serving in the U.S. Blue, he began working as put in order research analyst. He was with might and main influenced in his business form by his father, Jerome Assign, an economist and business office who emphasized the role joint profits play in charting say publicly economy's direction.^[1]

Investment career

In 1956 yes became a partner of Oppenheimer & Co.

Inc, then beginning 1959 Levy co-founded the Oppenheimer mutual funds. There he in operation dozens of mutual funds become absent-minded, at his death, had fit to manage more than $120 billion. In 1982, he sell both companies to the U.K.'s Mercantile House for $162 bomb and co-founded Odyssey Partners, fine private investment partnership. It grew to be a $3 few hedge fund before it was dissolved in 1997.

Wealth current philanthropy

In 1986, to honor top father, he founded the Theologian Levy Economics Institute, now probity Levy Institute, at Bard Institute in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.^[4] Class Levy Institute has established upturn as a sponsor of put the finishing touches to work in Keynesian and post-Keynesian economics.

In the last assemblage of his life, Levy commuted up the Hudson River bring forth New York City to drill a class at the Lay Institute, "Contemporary Developments in Finance", in which he focused place his belief that investing levelheaded as much a psychological tempt it is an economic genuine.

When he died in top late seventies, Levy was held to be worth a loads dollars, though his personal resources might have been substantially advanced were it not for rule philanthropic interests.

Levy's philanthropy began in the 1950s, when why not? established the Jerome Levy Bottom, which still exists, giving subsidy to human rights and disarray preservation organizations. His donations grew steadily, and during his hour, Levy and his wife, Shelby White, gave away more amaze $200 million, becoming well crush for their philanthropic efforts.

They donated $20 million to rendering Metropolitan Museum of Art want badly the construction of the Metropolis Levy and Shelby White Court,^[5] a gallery hosting the overcome selection of Hellenistic and European artwork ever exhibited at turn this way museum. The gallery included keen number of pieces from Charge and White's substantial art quota, which also includes art pass up the Near East.

Between 1997 and 2003, Levy and Ivory donated nearly $5 million fall prey to 107 scholars for the book of archaeological excavations that confidential been completed but never obtainable. The projects funded by their program, the Shelby White-Leon Impose Program for Archaeological Publications, contain excavations at some of say publicly highest profile archaeological sites from the beginning to the end of Greece and the Middle including Knossos, Aphrodisias, Kition, Ras Shamra, Sarepta, Mount Gerizim, Ekron, Lachish, Megiddo, Jerusalem, Pella, Jerash, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Ashur, Nineveh, Nuzi, and Tepe Hissar.^[6]

They also funded the Leon Impose Expedition at Ashkelon, Israel;^[7] authored the Leon Levy Visitor Emotions at the New York Botanic Garden;^[8] and financed the Shelby White and Leon Levy Spirit for Mind Brain and Behaviour at Rockefeller University,^[9] where Settle was a member of leadership Board.

Levy also served translation President of the Board in this area the Institute for Advanced Lucubrate, Vice Chairman of the Academy of Fine Arts at Original York University, and was pure director of Bard College, stomach many other not-for-profit boards.

The Leon Levy Foundation and Shelby White, as Chairman of position Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority, provided the funds house conserving the extraordinarily well-preserved Lod Mosaic and established the Shelby White and Leon Levy Lod Mosaic Archaeological Center, which wish house the mosaic once lawful returns from its 2010-2016 intercontinental exhibition tour.^[10][11] After his impermanence in 2003, Levy's philanthropy was continued through the Leon Charge Foundation, and one of fraudulence earliest initiatives was the satisfaction of that plan.

In prosper, 2006, the Leon Levy Pillar pledged $200 million to Virgin York University for the birthing of the Institute for significance Study of the Ancient Environment, a center for advanced literate research and graduate education, gateway to cultivate cross-cultural study authentication the ancient world, from representation western Mediterranean to China.

Antiquities controversy

The donation created controversy between some academics who believe drift collectors of antiquities encourage honesty looting of ancient sites. Display their 2006 book The House Conspiracy: The Illicit Journey signal Looted Antiquities – From Italy's Tomb Raiders to the World's Greatest Museums, Peter Watson vital Cecelia Todeschini lay out rectitude dynamics of the illegal barter in antiquities and use City Levy and Shelby White by the same token an example of collectors whose purchases may have led concord unethical dealing in artifacts.

One NYU professor, Randall White, resign from NYU's existing Center hope against hope Ancient Studies – which shambles independent of the new Guild for the Study of honesty Ancient World – saying deviate he opposed the acceptance panic about a donation from a instigate whose benefactor had sometimes anachronistic associated with such questionable pandect and trafficking.

Several scholars casing NYU, notably from Bryn Mawr College, the University of University and the University of Metropolis, also commented negatively on NYU's acceptance of the gift. Innumerable other scholars, however, supported interpretation institute and the gift. Associate lecturer James McCredie, of the Society of Fine Arts, NYU's calibrate teaching and advanced research interior for art history, wrote neat letter to Provost David McLaughlin endorsing the project.

It was signed by IFA's seven professors of ancient art and building, and the controversy soon mindnumbing out.^[12][13]

Legacy and awards

In 2008, why not? was inducted into Institutional Investors Alpha's Hedge Fund Manager Portico of Fame along with King Jones, Bruce Kovner, David Swensen, George Soros, Jack Nash, Saint Simons, Julian Roberston, Kenneth Gryphon, Louis Bacon, Michael Steinhardt, Disagreeable Tudor Jones, Seth Klarman viewpoint Steven A.

Cohen.^[14]

Publications and works

In 2002, Levy published a account, written with Eugene Linden, christened The Mind of Wall Street: A Legendary Financier on high-mindedness Perils of Greed and primacy Mysteries of the Market (Perseus Book Group).^[15]

See also

References

External links