 |
David I. Saperstein | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1941 (age 82–83) |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Occupation | businessman |
| Known for | founder of Metro Networks |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 7 |
David I. Saperstein (born 1941) is an American entrepreneur and founder of Metro Networks.
|
David I. Saperstein | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1941 (age 82–83) |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Occupation | businessman |
| Known for | founder of Metro Networks |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 7 |
David I. Saperstein (born 1941) is an American entrepreneur and founder of Metro Networks.
Saperstein was born to Jewish parents in Baltimore. He dropped out of college to sell used cars. When he got stuck in a snowstorm he came up with the idea to sell traffic reports on the radio. He used his Ford Dealership to start his new venture in Baltimore. When Ford withdrew its support of Saperstein and he lost his dealership, he founded Metro Networks in 1978. the company grew to serve over 1,500 radio stations in the U.S. In 1996, Saperstein decided to take Metro Networks public on the Nasdaq exchange, stock symbol MTNT. He made his fortune when he sold the company to Westwood One in 1999 for $1.25 billion in stock. Now he operates tree farms in Texas and Florida: "It's a growing business," he once told a reporter for Forbes magazine.[ citation needed ] In 1988, Saperstein was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board.
Saperstein began his career selling used cars in Baltimore, but quickly found there was a niche for radio programming to include traffic reports. While traffic reporting was already a part of radio programming in some cities, Saperstein found there was no single company providing concise reports for stations, either regionally or nationally.
In 1978 he founded Metro Networks, in Houston, Texas. The company grew, through the 1980s, into a veritable traffic reporting empire, and in 1996, Saperstein took the company public on the Nasdaq exchange.
In 1992, Saperstein's daughter married Shane Coppola in Baltimore, Maryland in a wedding that was described as "the social event of the season in the nation's capital." The wedding is referenced in the 1993 film Dave, starring Kevin Kline.
In 1998, Saperstein, with his son-in-law, Coppola, began negotiating a merger agreement with Westwood One, and in September 1999 three companies merged, Metro Networks, Copter Acquisition Corp. and Westwood One.
Only 9 days before the merger between Metro Networks and Westwood One, Saperstein started a new company called Five "S" Capital, Inc. Five "S" is an investment company that helps to fund new business development.
Saperstein sits on the boards of Cedars-Sinai Hospital and Music Center of Los Angeles. He is also a member of the Homeland Security Advisory Committee. In 2006, the Saperstein Critical Care tower that bears his name was opened at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Initially named the David and Suzanne Saperstein Tower, it had to be renamed after his rancorous divorce. In 2009, he donated $12 million to help build the Milken Middle School, a Jewish day school in Los Angeles, California; it was renamed the David Saperstein Middle School in his honor. [2]
Saperstein has been married three times. He has two children with his first wife, Phyllis Grief – Michelle Saperstein Coppola and Jennifer Saperstein Kalapoutis. In 2006, Saperstein divorced his second wife of 23 years, Swedish philanthropist Suzanne ( née Carlstrand) Saperstein, whom he married in 1986. [3] He had the divorce papers served to her in Texas on a stopover on her way from California to Europe. [4] [5] [6] They had three children – Jonathan (b. 1987), Alexis (b. 1988), and Stefanie (b 1990). [7] Saperstein later married another Swedish woman, Hillevi Svensson (1973–2019) from Bua in Varberg, formerly nanny to his children. [7] [8] They had twins together. On January 2, 2019, Hillevi died while vacationing in Anguilla with David and their two children. [1]
His cousin, Ken Mehlman was the former national Republican chair and president George W. Bush's strategist for both of his terms.
During the 1990s, Saperstein built a 12-bedroom, 15-bathroom Versailles-style estate called Fleur de Lys with his then-wife, Suzanne, sprawled across several acres on Carolwood Drive in Holmby Hills. The home is listed by Forbes magazine as one of the most expensive in the United States, with an estimated property value of about $125 million. The compound, which according to W Magazine is inspired by France's 17th-century Vaux-le-Vicomte, occupies about 45,000 square feet (4,200 m2) and is called Fleur de Lys ("Lily Flower" in French). The home took five years to build and the couple were divorced 18 months after it was completed. His wife Suzanne had the house on the market at a listing price of $125 million shortly after divorcing her husband. [9] [10] He also owns a horse ranch nestled in the hills at the east end of Simi Valley, California, called Hummingbird Nest Ranch. [11] The ranch has a main villa, a period ranch house, four guest houses, and stables for dozens of horses. [12] By 2014, the 126-acre property had become a self-contained village with housing for staff, a commercial laundry, water wells, diesel generators, a gasoline pump and a large solar panel field. [13] [14]
Toufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn is an Israeli-born American-Canadian televangelist, best known for his regular "Miracle Crusades"—revival meeting or faith healing summits that are usually held in stadiums in major cities, which are later broadcast worldwide on his television program, This Is Your Day.
Designing Women is an American television sitcom created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason that aired on CBS between September 29, 1986 and May 24, 1993, producing seven seasons and 163 episodes. It was a joint production of Bloodworth/Thomason Mozark Productions in association with Columbia Pictures Television for CBS.
Chatsworth is a suburban neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, in the San Fernando Valley.
Westwood One was an American radio network that was based in New York City. At one time, it was managed by CBS Radio, and was later purchased by the private equity firm, The Gores Group. Due to purchases, mergers and other forms of consolidation in the 1980s and 1990s, at one time or another, it had ownership stakes in or syndication rights to some of the most famous brands in network radio, including CBS, NBC, Mutual, CNN, Fox, and Unistar. The company was one of the largest producers and distributors of radio programming in the United States. It broadcast entertainment, news, weather, sports, talk, and traffic programming to about 7,700 radio stations across the United States. The company was the top provider of local traffic reports in the U.S. through its subsidiaries, Metro Networks, Shadow Broadcast Services, SmartRoute Systems, and Sigalert.com. Westwood One also offers weather services; originally using Accuweather, Westwood switched to The Weather Channel in 2009.
Robert Charles Wright is an American lawyer, businessman, lobbyist, and author. He is a former NBC executive, having served as president and CEO from 1986 to 2001, and chairman and CEO from 2001 until he retired in 2007. He has been credited with overseeing the broadcast network's expansion into a media conglomerate and leading the company to record earnings in the 1990s. Prior to NBC, he held several posts at General Electric in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. He served as President and CEO of GE Capital, GE Financial Services 1983 to 1986 and served as GE's vice chairman until he retired from that role in 2008.
Shadow Broadcast Services was a broadcasting outsourcing company based in Rutherford, New Jersey. It was a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications. Together with its sister companies Metro Networks, Metro Source, Total Traffic Network, SigAlert and Traffax, the company operated a number of local and regional news and traffic operations that provided regular reports to affiliates.
Chris Albrecht is an American media executive. He is the co-founder of Rubicon Global Media and was previously chairman and CEO of HBO and CEO and President of Starz.
Global Traffic Network is a traffic reporting service that provides reports to radio and television stations across Australia, Canada, Brazil and the United Kingdom. The company was formed in 2005 by principals from Westwood One and Metro Networks, both of which provide direct traffic and news programming to their affiliate stations in the U.S.
Simi Valley is a city in the valley of the same name in the southeast region of Ventura County, California, United States. Simi Valley is 40 miles (65 km) from Downtown Los Angeles, making it part of the Greater Los Angeles Area. The city borders Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, and the Chatsworth neighborhood of Los Angeles. As of the 2020 U.S. Census the population was 126,356, up from 124,243 in 2010. The city of Simi Valley is surrounded by the Santa Susana Mountains and the Simi Hills, west of the San Fernando Valley, and northeast of the Conejo Valley. It grew as a bedroom community for the cities in the Los Angeles area and the San Fernando Valley when a freeway was built over the Santa Susana Pass.
Holmby Hills is a neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California, United States.
Michael "Trigger Mike" Coppola was a New York City mobster who became a caporegime of the 116th Street Crew of the Luciano family, which later came to be known as the Genovese family. Coppola headed many Genovese family criminal operations from the late 1930s until the early 1960s. He should not be confused with Michael "Mikey Cigars" Coppola, a later member of the Genovese crime family.
Forrest Edward Mars Jr. was an American heir and businessman. He was the eldest son of Audrey Ruth (Meyer) and Forrest Mars Sr., and the grandson of Frank C. Mars, the founder of Mars, Incorporated. He served as Co-President of the confectionery company from 1975 to 1999.
Kimba Maureen Wood is an American judge who is a senior district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Peter Marc Jacobson is an American television writer, director, producer, and actor. He is best known as the showrunner of the popular sitcom The Nanny, which he created and produced with his then-wife, Fran Drescher, who also starred in the series. He was often credited as Peter Marc in his early acting roles.
Svenska Hollywoodfruar was a Swedish reality TV series from 2009 to 2019 that followed Swedish women in Hollywood and their glamorous lives. The first episode aired on TV3 on 14 September 2009, and became a hit with over 600,000 viewers. In March 2020, TV3 announced that the thirteenth season would be the last.
Rodney Ray Lewis, known as Rod Lewis, is founder, president, and chief executive officer of Lewis Energy, an oil and natural gas drilling company based in Texas, US.
Fleur de Lys is a large residence in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, California.
Marc B. Nathanson is an American entrepreneur who served as the United States ambassador to Norway from 2022 to 2024. He is best known for his founding of Falcon Cable, which he sold in 1999 for $3.7 billion. He is a member of the Cable TV Hall of Fame, awarded with Inc.s Entrepreneur of the Year and a former chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. In 2021, his net worth was listed as $2.3 billion by Forbes Magazine in their annual The World's Billionaires listing;
Giraud Foster was a businessman and socialite notable during America's gilded age. An avid bridge player, equestrian and sailor, Foster accumulated a large fortune from coal and shipping.
Nazanin Aliza Mandighomi , known professionally as Nazanin Mandi, is an American actress, singer, model, and life coach.