Perry Richardson Bass
American billionaire, philanthropist and patriarch to the Bass Brothers of Fort Worth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Perry Richardson Bass (November 11, 1914 – June 1, 2006) was an American heir, investor, philanthropist and sailor.
Perry Richardson Bass | |
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| Born | November 11, 1914 |
| Died | June 1, 2006 (aged 91) |
| Education | Yale University |
| Occupations | Investor, philanthropist |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Sid Bass Lee Bass Ed Bass Robert Bass |
| Relatives | Sid W. Richardson (uncle) Hyatt Bass (granddaughter) |
Early life and education
Richardson Bass was born on November 11, 1914, in Wichita Falls, Texas to oil operator Dr. E. Perry Bass[1] and Anne Richardson Bass.[2][3][4] He was educated at The Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania.[2] He graduated from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology in 1937.[2][3]
Career
He worked for his uncle, Sid W. Richardson, a rancher and oil wildcatter, in the 1940s and 1950s.[5] Upon his uncle's death, he inherited his oil and ranching interests, worth several million dollars.[2]
Philanthropy
As a result of good investments, Bass was worth US$1 billion by 2005 and was the 746th-wealthiest American citizen.[5] He became a philanthropist. He funded the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, Texas.[4] In 1991, he donated US$1 million to 50 institutions.[3] The Perry R. Bass Marine Fisheries Research Center in Palacios, Texas is named in his honor.[6]
With his wife, he has donated art to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth.[4] The collection includes Street in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and Enclosed Field with Plowman by Vincent van Gogh as well as Fruit Dish, Bottle, and Guitar by Pablo Picasso.[4] It also includes paintings by Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Édouard Vuillard, Pierre Bonnard, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Fernand Léger, Marc Chagall and Mark Rothko as well as sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Aristide Maillol and Simon Segal.[4]
He was a leading syndicate member of the unsuccessful 1974 America’s Cup defender candidate, Mariner, helmed by Ted Turner.[7]
The Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Center for Molecular and Structural Biology is named after Bass and his wife, and was completed in 1993.[8]
Sailor
Perry built his own wooden Snipe sailboat; in 1935, while studying at Yale, he won the Snipe class world sailing championship.[9][10] A one-time vice commodore of the Houston Yacht Club and a longtime member of the Del Rey Yacht Club,[11] he was honorary navigator for Ted Turner's "American Eagle" when it won the Southern Ocean Racing Circuit and the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race in 1972.[12]
Personal life
He married Nancy Lee Muse in 1941.[4][5] They had four sons, all notable businessmen and philanthropists, and all billionaires: Sid Bass (born 1942),[4] Ed Bass (born 1945),[4] Robert Bass (born 1948)[4] and Lee Bass (born 1956)[4]
Bass family
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Death
He died on June 1, 2006, in Fort Worth, Texas.[2]