Gérard Louis-Dreyfus

Gérard Louis-Dreyfus
Born Gérard C. Louis-Dreyfus
1932 (1932)
Paris, France
Nationality French
Other names William Louis-Dreyfus
Occupation investor
Employer self employed
Net worth $2.9 billion
Title Ex Chairman of Louis Dreyfus Energy Services
Spouse Phyllis B. Louis-Dreyfus (1965-present)
Judith Bowles (1959-1962)
Children Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Phoebe Emily Dominique Louis-Dreyfus Eavis
Emma R. Louis-Dreyfus

William Louis-Dreyfus (born Gérard C. Louis-Dreyfus; 1932) is a French-born American businessman. With his family's net worth estimated at $2.9 billion by Forbes, he is one of the richest men in the world.[1] He is the chairman of Louis Dreyfus Energy Services and the great grandson of Léopold Louis-Dreyfus, founder of Louis Dreyfus Group.[2] He is the father of Emmy and Golden Globe winning actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

Contents

Life and career

Louis-Dreyfus was born in Paris. His father was Pierre Louis-Dreyfus (1908-2011)[3], a French Jew who fought in the French Resistance during World War II.[4] In 1940, he moved to the United States with his American mother after her divorce from Pierre. By 1945 he had adopted the name William as a symbol of his integration into American society.

While in France he retains the name Gérard; in the United States he is William. After graduating from Trinity College of Arts and Sciences at Duke University and Duke University School of Law, he worked at the law firm of Dewey Ballantine, New York, before joining Louis Dreyfus in 1965.

His primary home is in Bedford, New York on a farm called Lulu Farm. Louis-Dreyfus opens Lulu Farm to the public for Garden Tours each spring and summer. The farm features a sizable vegetable garden, miniature evergreen conifer garden, a terraced perennials garden, an herb garden in the round, many specimen tree and shrub plantings, as well as a few cows, sheep and chickens.

Family

Immediate family

First Wife: Judith Bowles. Separated, 1962.

Child With Judith Bowles:

Second Wife: Phyllis B. Louis-Dreyfus.

Children With Phyllis Louis-Dreyfus:

Gérard Louis-Dreyfus also has a son, Raphael.

Cousins

One cousin is Jean Louis-Dreyfus, grandson of the family business founder, Léopold Louis-Dreyfus. Another cousin is Robert Louis-Dreyfus, the former chief executive officer of Adidas.

See also

References

  1. ^ Forbes.com "Gérard Louis-Dreyfus & family". Forbes.com. October 2004. http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2004/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYear=2004&passListType=Person&uniqueId=DDGH&datatype=Person Forbes.com. Retrieved 2007-10-28. 
  2. ^ "Gerard Louis Dreyfus Executive Biography". Louis Dreyfus Group. http://www.louisdreyfus.com/content.cfm?page=execbios.cfm&gbus=8. Retrieved 2007-10-28. 
  3. ^ "Louis Dreyfus Dead at 102". http://www.tradewinds.no/drycargo/article574101.ece. Retrieved 2011-06-11. 
  4. ^ By TVtropolis June 1, 2006 (2006-06-01). "Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Seinfeld". Canada.com. http://www.canada.com/tvtropolis/story.html?id=1375fbf0-e748-4bfc-9729-d2b6e065bec7. Retrieved 2010-09-01.