Mercedes Bass

Mercedes Bass
Born Mercedes Tavacoli Diba
Iran
Nationality American
Occupation Philanthropist
Spouse(s) Francis L. Kellogg (divorced)
Sid Bass (divorced)

Mercedes Bass (born Mercedes Tavacoli Diba) is an Iranian American philanthropist active in New York City, Aspen, Colorado and Fort Worth, Texas. She has supported the Metropolitan Opera and she is a trustee of the Aspen Institute and the American Academy in Rome.

Early life

Mercedes Tavacoli Diba was born in Iran.[1][2] She was educated in England.[3] She received a Bachelor's degree in Business from a Swiss university.[3]

Philanthropy

She serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and the Executive Committee of the Carnegie Hall Corporation as well as Managing Director of the Board of Trustees and Executive Board of the Metropolitan Opera, both of which are based in New York City.[3][4] In 2008, she appeared as an extra at the Met.[5]

Additionally, she serves on the Advisory Board of the Aspen Music School and on the Board of Trustees of the Aspen Institute, both of which are based in Aspen, Colorado.[3][6] She has also served as Vice Chairman of the Executive Committee and member of the Board of Directors of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association in Fort Worth, Texas, where she has been a donor.[3][7] Currently, she serves as this orchestra's Chairman of the Board. [8]

She serves as Vice Chairman of the Executive Committee and member of the Board of Trustees of the American Academy in Rome in Rome, Italy.[3] In 2013, she chaired the gala of the Rome Prize.[9]

In 2012, she was a donor to Rick Perry's presidential campaign.[10] In 2014, she was the underwriter of the Oscar de la Renta exhibition at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas.[11]

Personal life

Her first husband, Ambassador Francis L. Kellogg, served as a Special Assistant to Secretaries of State William P. Rogers and Henry Kissinger.[1] In 1986, she married Sid Bass, an heir and investor.[1] They divorced in 2011.[1][12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Eric Wilson, An ’80s Scandal Comes to a Quiet End, The New York Times, October 14, 2011
  2. ↑ Maureen Callahan, The story behind Sid & Mercedes Bass' affair, marriage and surprising split, The New York Post, October 16, 2011
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Aspen Institute
  4. ↑ Bloomberg BusinessWeek: Mercedes T. Bass
  5. ↑ Haven Thompson, Mercedes at the Met, W, April 2008
  6. ↑ Brent Gardner-Smith, Aspen and the Forbes 400 list, Aspen Daily News, September 28, 2007
  7. ↑ Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra forms ‘artistic partnership’ with Cliburn winner Kholodenko, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, February 20, 2014
  8. ↑ http://www.fwsymphony.org/about/board.asp
  9. ↑ Amanda Gordon, Scene Last Night: Bass Fetes Rome Muse; Tory Burch, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, April 19, 2013
  10. ↑ Anna M.Tinsley, Texas donors pour $61 million into election, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, November 4, 2012
  11. ↑ Christina Geyer, Bush Presidential Center displays Oscar de la Renta originals, The Dallas Morning News, July 18, 2014
  12. ↑ Love, etc.: Sid and Mercedes Bass divorce, The Washington Post, 10/10/2011
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