Sumner Redstone

Sumner Murray Redstone was born Sumner Murray Rothstein on May 27, 1923 in Boston, Massachusetts. He is a major shareholder and Chairman of the Board of the National Amusements theater chain. Sumner Redstone is one of the owners of CBS Corporation, Viacom, MTV Networks, BET, Paramount Pictures, and DreamWorks movie studios.

Sumner Redstone’s Education and Career

Redstone attended the Boston Latin School, from which he graduated as the class topper. He later did his B.A. in Harvard College. He went on to serve the U.S. Army in World War II. After completing Army service, he worked in Washington, D.C. and later, attended the Georgetown University Law School. He later transferred into Harvard Law School and received his LL.B.

Redstone worked for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. and San Francisco, and then started private practice. After practicing law for a few years, he joined his father's theater chain. He coined the phrase “Content is king!”, as he believed that content was more important than different distribution techniques. He invested in Columbia Pictures, Orion Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, and Paramount Pictures and made huge profits by selling those stocks in the early 1980s.

Major Businesses of Sumner Redstone

Redstone won the voting control of Viacom in 1987 and made a series of takeovers to make it one of the tier-1 companies in the media industry. He acquired Paramount Communications in 1993 and under his leadership, the company became hugely successful, achieving record performance rates. Redstone also acquired Blockbuster Entertainment, CBS Corporation, and DreamWorks SKG into his group of companies, of which Blockbuster and CBS were spun off later into independent companies. Forbes estimated Redstone’s net worth to be $2.4 billion in March 2010. Redstone’s autobiography, ‘A Passion to Win’, which he co-wrote with Peter Knobler, highlighted his business acquisitions and mergers.

Sumner Redstone’s Personal Life

Redstone married Phyllis Gloria Raphael in 1944. He has two children, Shari Redstone and Brent Redstone. After 55 years of marriage, Redstone was divorced from his wife in 1999. He married a former primary school teacher Paula Fortunato in 2002 and later divorced her in 2009.

Humanitarian Work of Sumner Redstone

Redstone pledged $105 million to fund research and patient care advancements in cancer and burn recovery at FasterCures/The Center for Accelerating Medical Solutions, based in Washington D.C., the Cedars-Sinai Prostate Cancer Center in Los Angeles, California, and the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He donated $500,000 to the Cambodian Children's Fund, a program that provides numerous critical health and educational services to impoverished and abused children. He also presented $1 million in early 2010 to Autism Speaks, for scientific research into causes, improved treatments, and cure for autism.

Awards Presented to Sumner Redstone

Redstone has received various awards including the Army Commendation Medal, William J. German Human Relations Award (1977), Communicator of the Year Award (1980), Silver Shingle Award (1985), Man of the Year (1988), Variety New England Humanitarian Award (1989), and Pioneer of the Year Award (1991).

Sumner Redstone Biography

CBS Corporation - Sumner Redstone

Sumner Redstone - Forbes Profile