The Eccentric Billionaire: John D. MacArthur--Empire Builder, Reluctant Philanthropist, Relentless Adversary

247 Pages·2008·1.45 MB·English

by  Nancy Kriplen

THE ECCERNTRIC BILLIONAIRE
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T H E
ECCENTRRIC BILLIONAIRE
JOHN D. MACARTHUR—
EMPIRE BUILDER, RELUCTANT PHILANTHROPIST,
RELENTLESS ADVERSARY
NANCY KRIPLEN
AMERICAN MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kriplen, Nancy.
The eccentric billionaire : John D. MacArthur—empire builder, reluctant
philanthropist, relentless adversary /Nancy Kriplen.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8144-0889-6
ISBN-10: 0-8144-0889-3
1. MacArthur, John D., 1897–1978. 2. Capitalists and financiers—United States—
Biography. 3. Billionaires—United States—Biography. 4. Businesspeople—United
States—Biography. 5. Philanthropists—United States—Biography. I. Title.
II.Title: John D. MacArthur—empire builder, reluctant philanthropist, relentless
adversary.
HG172.M28K75 2008
368.0092—dc22
[B]
2007031227
© 2008 Nancy Kriplen.
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
This publication may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of
AMACOM, a division of American Management Association, 1601 Broadway, New
York, NY 10019.
Printing number
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Dave, always,
and
Marsh, Kate, Madelyn
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RCONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ix
PROLOGUE 1
chapter 1 Ransoming the Ruby 3
chapter 2 Breaking the Sod 11
chapter 3 Baby John 17
chapter 4 Life with Father 23
chapter 5 The Competitor 33
chapter 6 Every Little Breeze 43
chapter 7 Catherine T 49
chapter 8 Staying Afloat 57
chapter 9 The Mother Lode 63
chapter 10 Divorce ... and Death 73
chapter 11 Hat Trick 85
chapter 12 Down Among the Sheltering Palms 95
chapter 13 Banyan Trees and Hibiscus Hedges 103
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viii Contents
chapter 14 Hogs Get Slaughtered 109
chapter 15 The Colonnades 117
chapter 16 Founding a Foundation 127
chapter 17 Palm Beach Prometheus 135
chapter 18 Lost and Sometimes Found 141
chapter 19 Royal Summons 151
chapter 20 And with Dignity 161
chapter 21 Genius 169
LOCATION OF COLLECTIONS CITED 179
NOTES 181
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 213
INDEX 217
ACKNROWLEDGMENTS
Roaring through the inky darkness, sports car drivers and navigators
competing in twenty-four-hour road rallies such as the Michigan Milia
are likely to talk the night away in an effort to stay awake. It was on
such occasions that my future husband heard tales from his pal Sandy
MacArthur about Sandy’s colorful and eccentric “Uncle John.” What a
great subject for a biography, I thought, as I, too, later heard these sto-
ries from Sandy.
By the time I was ready to attempt to capture this life on paper, a
remarkable project had already been completed that aided my work
immensely. In the 1980s the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
Foundation funded the research and writing of a slim book about the
MacArthur family origins, which was given private and limited dis-
tribution. The MacArthur Heritage: The Story of an American Familywas
written by the historian Barbara Graymont, based on John Taylor’s ex-
tensive interviews, primarily with those who knew John MacArthur’s
family in its early days.
Both Dr. Graymont and Dr. Taylor were faculty members at Nyack
College, a religious school with MacArthur family connections. Dr.
Graymont, former dean of the school’s history department, is an expe-
rienced and graceful writer of history, and Dr. Taylor, a cheerful, inde-
fatigable interviewer. These interviews have been particularly valuable,
since many of those whom he interviewed are no longer living.
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