| Maurice Kanbar | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1930 (age 81–82) Brooklyn, New York[1] |
Maurice Kanbar (born 1930)[2][3] is an American entrepreneur and inventor who lives in San Francisco, California. He is particularly well-known for his creation of SKYY vodka, and is also noted for his extensive real estate investments.
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Kanbar is stated to own 36 patents on various consumer and medical products, invented the D-Fuzz-It comb for sweaters, Tangoes Puzzle Game, the Safetyglide hypodermic needle protector, a cryogenic cataract remover, a new LED traffic light, and Zip Notes,[4] rolled sticky notes with a centerline adhesive strip.[5] He created New York's first multiplex cinema, the Quad Cinema, which was the first movie theater in Manhattan to have four small auditoriums in one building.[6]
In the beverage industry, Kanbar had a success with SKYY vodka,[7] also introduced Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur[8] and most recently has launched Blue Angel Premium Vodka.[7]
He produced the animated film Hoodwinked! which was released in January 2006[9] and grossed over $100M worldwide.[7]
Kanbar owns many commercial buildings in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[10] His extensive investments in Tulsa led to a legal dispute with his former business partner Henry Kaufman, with each suing the other.[11] [12] At one point Kanbar's company was reported to have owned as much as one-third of all available office space in downtown Tulsa[13] although some of these properties were subsequently sold or reported to be for sale.[3][14]
Kanbar is a graduate of Philadelphia University, where he studied Materials Science. In 2005, he donated $6 million dollars for the construction of the school's new campus center, the largest donation in the school's history.[15] In 1997, Kanbar donated $5 million to the Tisch School of the Arts, part of New York University, which named its film school after him: The Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film and Television.[16][17] Through a donation from the Kanbar College Charitable Trust, Kanbar Hall was constructed at Bowdoin College, the alma mater of Maurice's brother, Elliott.[18]
Kanbar owns and lives in an eight-story residential tower in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco; he received attention for his 1999 decision to evict his tenants in order to become the sole occupant of the building.[19] He is a member of Mensa.[20] He has received honorary degrees from Kenyon College,[21] Bar-Ilan University,[22] and Yeshiva University.[1]