The fortunes, eccentricities and scandals of the world’s richest people have captivated the interest of people all over the world, resulting in the desire to delve in deeper in the lives of these titans of industry. Carlos Slim does not escape this fate.
With the media constantly looking for headlines, it’s hard to remain outside of the public eye. Being a father of six and grandfather of twenty, his time belongs to his family, his business and his philanthropic activities. However, those in his inner circle know his understanding and concern of bearing the responsibility that comes with being the “riches man in the world” and the media attention that comes with it.
Another millionaire who attracted the international spotlight was the Greek ship-owner Aristotle Onassis, who used to say that “a rich man is usually nothing more than a poor man with money.” He was a mythical figure who created his own legend. In time he became a celebrity both for his vast fortune, his eccentric lifestyle and his love scandals. Born in 1906 in the small Turkish village of Izmir, Onassis took over the family business and became a mogul by the time he was 40.
To contrast, the Rockefeller family never enjoyed the prestige and admiration that most millionaires and billionaires enjoy. Since the beginning of their dynasty they were criticized for having very little scruples for business.
The family’s public perception and discrediting was such that the University of Columbia rejected a million dollar donation to avoid being associated with the Rockefeller Foundation. John Rockefeller II was accused of doing business with the Nazis, selling them formulas patented in the United States.
In an attempt to restore their tarnished image, the Rockefeller clan took refuge in philanthropy. Always, however with self-promotion on their mind. Erecting what would later become landmarks in order to gain more positive celebrity, erecting buildings such as famous Rockefeller Center, and Radio City Music Hall, in the heart of New York City.
Within all families exist the tongue in cheek tradition of sharing family anecdotes that showcase the stinginess of the patriarch. It was told, for example, that on one occasion at the luxurious Waldorf Astoria Hotel a waiter complained about the small tip that was left by John Davison Rockefeller. The gutsy waiter addressed this by commenting to John that his grandson, Nelson, was much more generous in this regard. The patriarch replied: “Yes, but my grandson has a millionaire grandfather. I don’t. “
John Pierpont Morgan or JP Morgan, as he was known, was famous for his greed and his sinister personality, reflected in his threatening eyes and disfiguring nose. Despite his ugly appearance, JP Morgan (1837 - 1913) has been widely recognized as one of the most important bankers in history and one of the fundamental personalities in the United States during the nineteenth century. His father, Junius Spencer Morgan, though born in the United States, developed his professional career in the United Kingdom, where he sought to facilitate access to European funds for private companies and the U.S. government.
Although the Morgan family had sufficient economic resources, Junius refused to coddle JP, despite the fact that his parents realized early on that he was a sickly child. This didn’t stop Junius from making sure his son was prepared and would often prepare and encourage him to take trips on his own. Long before he entered his adolescence his parents sent him to live on the island of Madeira for one year in order to strengthen his lungs with the islands pure air. The sickly Morgan studied at the English College in Boston and some of the most exclusive schools in Switzerland, where he learned French. Later he enrolled at the prestigious University of Gottingen in Germany, where he excelled in all matters relating to the exact sciences, specifically mathematics. When he reached fifteen, his parents made him travel Europe by himself. It was during this trip where his admiration for the arts began, which would shortly thereafter turn into his passion.
JP Morgan believed that languages are fundamentally important for business and, in that respect, it was important be a well-educated person. This drove him to travel throughout Europe visiting museums, libraries and attending concerts. When she was twenty he graduated college and returned to live in New York, where he began his career in finance, working for Duncan, Sherman & Co., the U.S. representative of George Peabody & Co., which his father owned. This job would provide a good foundation for his eventual management of his father’s company through his own company, JP Morgan & Co., from which he began to build one of the largest financial and industrial empires impressive.
In 1890, upon the death of his father, JP Morgan was placed in charge of all family businesses, with banks in England and France. Three years later his business partner Anthony Drexel also dies, thereby leaving him as sole administrator of the vast financial empire.
In 1871 JP Morgan founded, the firm Drexel, Morgan & Co., the largest and most successful investment firm on Wall Street, which became the main source of financing of the U.S. government. He also invested heavily in railroads. In 1900 he had 5.0 miles of railroad. His wealth was such that in 1912 he controlled 70% of the funding sources of the country and their companies were estimated at $25 billion. He was the subject of an investigation, accused of monopolizing many of the sectors in which he did business, but claimed that his empire was the simply the fruit of the new economy. In 1913 the legendary JP Morgan died, he bequeathed his amazing art collection to the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Jean Paul Getty, one of the richest men in the world, was famous for his stinginess. Getty, a Minnesota native, was born into and became immensely rich investing in oil. He was one of the first to make a personal fortune that exceeded 1 million dollars. He founded the Getty Oil after to buying and then merging a number of small companies. His heirs sold it shortly after he died. In his time he established more than 200 companies and accumulated a wealth of more than $3 billion. He was a tireless collector of art, both as a hobby and as an investment. He enjoyed living in large mansions and castles, but would have pay phones installed in them to make sure the staff or the guests wouldn’t use his phone.
His fame for greed transcended fame during an incident involving the kidnapping of his grandson J. Paul Getty III while the young man was studying in Italy. The kidnapping occurred on July 10, 1973, in Rome, and the criminals demanded a ransom of 17 million dollars. At first the tycoon believed this was a self-kidnapping and that his own grandson was behind it to get money, however, Italian police confirmed that it was an actual kidnapping.
The millionaire then refused to pay the kidnappers, claiming he had fourteen grandchildren, and if he paid the ransom that would set a precedent and in the future he could be more victims of even more extortion. Given the lack of cooperation from the Getty family, the kidnappers sent a local Italian newspaper a lock of the boy’s hair and the boy’s right ear. A note along with them threatened to send the second ear within ten days if their demands were not met. Getty reluctantly agreed to negotiate. He refused to pay the 17 million dollars that his grandson’s captors demanded and negotiated a payment of “only” two million.
He then ordered his administrators that this amount be turned over to his son as a loan, so that after he could get paid back with “comfortable” payments with low interest of 4%.
According Forbes there are only 1,200 multibillionaires worldwide. One is the American mogul Donald Trump, who has never been in the top ten, but is a media figure of some significance. He is famous for his scandalous love affairs. He has openly spoken up against gay marriage, and during another one of his public blunders he announced his candidacy for President of the United States in 2012. Perhaps such rash moves have lead to his rising unpopularity, some people have decided to protest Trump by openly boycotting not only his television shows and hotels, but also the products that sponsor anything related to Trump.
Of course, there is another type of millionaire, whose talent and generosity is actually committed to social causes and the betterment of their communities and countries.
Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Carlos Slim are the trio of the richest in the world. The first two have launched a program called “The Giving Pledge) ensuring that the richest in the U.S. and from around the world pledge to donate at least 50 % of their fortune before dying or through your will towards charities and social betterment. The call was successful. Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, was the one who set the example by promising away half his fortune to charity and Buffett followed soon after, pledging to give away 99% of his fortune, amounting to about 50 billion dollars.
Joining the pledge with Gates and Buffett was Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, and sixteen of the richest people in the United States, to which hundreds of millionaires in other parts of the world have been added, including Star Wars creator George Lucas, located at position 61 of the richest men in the world according to Forbes, Ted Turner, founder of CNN and billionaire founder of Oracle, Larry Ellison.
While Carlos Slim Helu did not join the project, because from his perspective social issues “are not fixed by giving away money,” he doesn’t see himself as a Santa Claus, he has chosen to spend a quarter of his fortune on social projects, through his foundations and other international organizations like the one headed by former U.S. President Bill Clinton.
The story of the world’s richest men is surrounded by myth and suspicion. By envy and often times by greed and ruthlessness. But it is also engrossed in philanthropy and strategy, and few scholars have delved into a serious analysis of these characters.
Daniel Alef, a versatile man (writer, lawyer, entrepreneur and professor) has been given the task of following the lives of hundreds of men and women who have excelled in their fields and made their fortunes in America. Within this task he has shadowed and written about the Rockefellers, the Morgans and the newly rich such as Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs, among many others. In doing this Daniel has been able to establish a common denominator within the vast variety of these fascinating characters. Many of them left school and opted for the title of Millionaire. Many came from rural families and left their studies in search of the American dream. According to Daniel’s assumptions, a college education is not a prerequisite for success in business, although many of the tycoons and millionaires stress the importance of their educational base and what they learned and how they learned to apply it. Others consider it a circumstantial benchmark like Steve Jobs, who attended Reed, or Bill Gates at Harvard.
Daniel Alef says that those who had access to the universities were able to maximize the value of networking within these prestigious houses of study. This is the case of Brin and Page, the famous founders of Google, who were supported by an investor to develop their project. One of his professors at Stanford was the key, which, together with another investor, each provided $100,000 long before Google even existed on paper.
But this does not mean that just because they have passed through a prestigious university that they will have secured business success. In fact 80% of American have amassed their wealth through the accumulation of one dollar at a time, designing and following through on a plan to grow that money until becoming a millionaire. With great self-discipline, and skills and without losing focus of their objectives. A simple but arduous path. The important thing is to take the first step, as the first million is always the hardest.