John Edward Anderson

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John Edward Anderson
Born September, 1917
Minneapolis, MN, U.S.
Occupation Business
Spouse Margaret (1942-1965)
Marion (1967-Present)
Children Susan
Judith
John, Jr.
William
Debbie

John Edward Anderson (born September, 1917) is the president and sole shareholder of Topa Equities, Ltd. Anderson currently oversees more than 40 wholly-owned subsidiaries in diverse industries such as agriculture, automotive dealerships, insurance, real estate and wholesale beverage distribution. In 2006, he was ranked #189 in Forbes Magazine 's list of the 400 richest Americans, with a net worth of $1.9 billion.[1]

Contents

[edit] Early years

Anderson was born in September, 1917 in Minneapolis, Minnesota He was the son of a barber.[2] Anderson was the valedictorian of his high school class.[2] Anderson also earned the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America in 1931.[3][4] He attended UCLA from 1936 to 1940, playing on the ice hockey team,[5] and graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a bachelor's degree in business administration.[6] While at UCLA, he was a member of the fraternity Beta Theta Pi.[7] He then attended Harvard Business School on scholarship, graduating with a MBA after World War II had broken out.[2] While at Harvard, he was a George Fisher Baker Scholar.[8] Anderson entered the military on the staff of an admiral, never saw combat, and passed his CPA exam while in the Navy.[2] Anderson continued his education after the war, earning his JD from Loyola Law School in 1950.[8][9] He graduated first in his class at Loyola, and was offered a full-time teaching position.[2] For the next 25 years, Anderson taught at the law school in mornings and evenings while he worked at his law firm.[2]

[edit] Family life

In 1942, Anderson married his UCLA sweetheart, Margaret, and they had five children.[2] Margaret died of cancer in 1965, and he married his current wife Marion in 1967.[2] His daughter Debbie died tragically at the age of seventeen in a car accident in 1969.[2] Anderson's sons John, Jr. and William are executive vice presidents in Topa Equities, Ltd., and his daughter Judith manages the agricultural ranch in Ojai, California.[2] He currently resides in Bel-Air, Los Angeles, California.[1] Anderson has 15 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.[2] Although Anderson could afford it, he does not purchase extravagant symbols of wealth like a private jet or yacht, but continues to go to work by 8 a.m. six days a week.[2] He encourages his children to give to charity, and his wife and daughter Judy run the Marion & John E. Anderson Foundation charity.[2]

[edit] Business life

Anderson was the founding partner of Kindel & Anderson law firm in 1953.[7][9] On April 1, 1956, Anderson founded Ace Beverage Co. with exclusive rights to distribute Budweiser in Los Angeles, California.[1] In 1980, he founded Topa Properties, Ltd., which owns a sizeable amount of property in the US Virgin Islands.[10] His portfolio now includes 4,000,000 square feet (370,000 m²) of commercial property and 4,500 residential units.[1] He is a past chairman of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles, a trustee and former president of Saint John's Hospital and Health Center Foundation and trustee of Claremont McKenna College.[8] He is on the board of directors of Mellon 1st Business Bank.[6] Anderson is on the Board of Visitors at the Anderson School of Management, which is named after him.[11] Anderson has also taught several business courses at UCLA.[6]

[edit] Awards

  • 1985 — Distinguished Service Award, Loyola Law School[8]
  • 1987 — UCLA Graduate School of Management was renamed the John E. Anderson School of Management after he donated $15 million[12]
  • 1987 — Southern California Entrepreneur of the Year[8]
  • 1988 — Outstanding Individual Philanthropist on National Philanthropy Day[8]
  • 1995 — UCLA Alumnus of the Year[8]
  • 1995 — UCLA Medal[8]
  • 2002 — Master Entrepreneur of the Year[8]
  • 2002 — John E. Anderson Distinguished Alumnus Award, UCLA John E. Anderson School of Management[8]
  • 2003 — Business Person of the year, Business Hall of Fame[8]
  • 2004 — Humanitarian Award, National Conference for Community and Justice[6]
  • Unk — Distinguished Eagle Scout Award

[edit] External links

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b c d The 400 Richest Americans #189 John Edward Anderson. Forbes Magazine (2006-09-21). Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Darmiento, Laurence (2004-03-22), “Secrets of his success: long hours, old-school ethics have earned John Anderson respect.”, Los Angeles Business Journal, <http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-115041997.html>. Retrieved on 19 March 2007 
  3. ^ Distinguished Eagle Scouts. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  4. ^ Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  5. ^ UCLA Hockey History. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  6. ^ a b c d John E. Anderson Elected to Mellon 1st Business Bank Board of Directors. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  7. ^ a b Zwahlen, Cyndia (1987-11-09), “Smile of steel: John Anderson bites off a far-flung empire.”, Los Angeles Business Journal, <http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-6243599.html>. Retrieved on 19 March 2007 
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 2002 John E. Anderson Distinguished Alumnus Award winner. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  9. ^ a b Loyola Law School Corporate Excellence. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  10. ^ Topa Properties, Ltd. About Us. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  11. ^ Senior Leadership at UCLA Anderson. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.
  12. ^ UCLA Campus Names - Management. Retrieved on 2007-03-19.

[edit] Sources