Richard Parsons (businessman)
Richard Parsons | |
|---|---|
| Born | Richard Dean Parsons 4 April 1948 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | 26 December 2024 (aged 76) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Corporate executive |
| Years active | 1971–2024 |
| Known for | Chairman of Citigroup; Chairman and CEO of Time Warner; Interim CEO of Los Angeles Clippers; Interim Chairman of CBS |
Richard Dean Parsons (April 4, 1948 – December 26, 2024) was a prominent American corporate leader, recognized primarily for his roles as chairman of Citigroup and as chairman and CEO of Time Warner. Additionally, he held interim positions as CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers (NBA) and as interim chairman of CBS.
Early life
Born on April 4, 1948, in Brooklyn, New York, Parsons came from an African-American background. He was one of five siblings. His maternal grandfather served as the chief groundskeeper at John D. Rockefeller’s estate, Kykuit. Raised in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, his father was employed as an electrical technician while his mother managed the household. Parsons advanced academically by skipping a grade in both elementary and high school.
He enrolled at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he competed on the varsity basketball team. Despite falling short by seven credits of completing his degree after four years, Parsons gained entry to Albany Law School without holding a college diploma by excelling in pre-law examinations. He graduated with a Juris Doctor degree in 1971, ranking first in his class.
Career
Parsons began his professional journey in 1971 with an internship at the New York State Legislature, which led to a legal position on the staff of New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller. When Rockefeller assumed the role of Vice President of the United States in 1974, Parsons relocated to Washington D.C., working closely with President Gerald Ford. During this period, he connected with deputy attorney general Harold R. Tyler and aide Rudolph W. Giuliani, later supporting Giuliani’s mayoral campaign in New York City and heading his transition team.
Returning to New York in 1977, Parsons joined the law firm Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, where he became a partner within two years; Giuliani was also part of this firm. Over an eleven-year tenure, Parsons represented notable clients such as Happy Rockefeller, widow of Nelson Rockefeller. In 1988, CEO Harry W. Albright Jr., a former Rockefeller associate, recruited Parsons as chief operating officer at the Dime Savings Bank of New York. Parsons eventually rose to chairman and CEO, managing a merger with Anchor Savings Bank and earning substantial gains from the bank’s demutualization process.
In 1991, upon Laurance Rockefeller’s recommendation to CEO Steve Ross, Parsons joined Time Warner’s board and was appointed president in 1995 under CEO Gerald Levin. He was instrumental in orchestrating the 2000 merger with America Online, forming a $165 billion media conglomerate that later faced criticism as one of the most ill-fated mergers. In December 2001, Parsons succeeded Levin as CEO, a move that surprised some observers who anticipated COO Robert W. Pittman would assume leadership. In 2003, he announced dropping "AOL" from the company’s name, reverting to "Time Warner". Parsons resigned from his CEO role in December 2007.
From February 2009 to April 2012, Parsons held the position of chairman at Citigroup before being replaced by Michael E. O'Neill. He also chaired Feigen Advisors’ advisory board, a consultancy for CEOs led by Marc Feigen.
In September 2018, Parsons was named Interim Chairman of the Board at CBS, succeeding Les Moonves. Due to health complications related to multiple myeloma, he stepped down in October 2018 and was succeeded by Strauss Zelnick.
Humanitarian endeavors
In 2007, Parsons assumed the role of chairman of the board for the Jazz Foundation of America. He also led the Apollo Theater Foundation as chair and served as co-chair on the advisory board for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Parsons was named board chair of the Rockefeller Foundation in 2016, an organization dedicated to advancing global welfare. He had been a member of its board of trustees since 2008.
Influential affiliations
Throughout the 1980s and much of the 1990s, Parsons owned a residence close to the Rockefeller family estate in Pocantico Hills, an area where his grandfather had previously worked as a groundskeeper. Early in his career, he briefly worked for Nelson Rockefeller at the family’s office known as "Room 5600" within Rockefeller Center.
He held the title of chairman emeritus at the Partnership for New York City, an initiative established by David Rockefeller in 1979. Parsons also acted as an advisory trustee for the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and collaborated with David Rockefeller on the board of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation. Additionally, he was a board member of the Museum of Modern Art, a cultural institution founded by the Rockefeller family.
In 2001, then United States President George W. Bush appointed Parsons as co-chair of a commission focused on reforming Social Security. He contributed to transition teams for New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2001 and New York Governor Eliot Spitzer in 2006.
In August 2006, New York Magazine speculated that Parsons might seek the New York City mayoralty in 2009; however, he consistently dismissed these rumors.
Parsons was included in President Barack Obama's economic advisory group and met with Obama in November 2008 to discuss strategies addressing the economic downturn. Following Governor Bill Richardson’s withdrawal from consideration for Secretary of Commerce, Parsons was regarded as a possible candidate.
On May 9, 2014, amid the controversy surrounding Donald Sterling’s racial remarks, Parsons was appointed interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Personal life and passing
Parsons married Laura Ann Bush in 1968, a community advocate holding a doctorate in child psychology whom he met at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. The couple had three children together.
In 2015, Parsons received a diagnosis of multiple myeloma, a rare form of blood cancer. After achieving remission through stem-cell treatment, health complications in 2018 compelled him to resign from his position as interim chairman of CBS.
Parsons passed away in New York City on December 26, 2024, at age 76. His friend Ronald S. Lauder reported that bone cancer was the cause of death.