Forbes magazine has released its annual top 400 richest persons in America, with its 25th anniversary issue.
Malcolm Stevenson Forbes (1917 to 1990) brought Forbes magazine into the forefront of business journals and his son, Malcolm Stevenson (“Steve”) Forbes Jr. (1947 – ) is current President, CEO and EIC of Forbes. Steve Forbes ran for President on the GOP side in 1996 and 2000.
I subscribe to Forbes, not because I’m any kind of investment hound (I can barely balance my own checkbook, much less my future retirement; numbers and finances stun me blind) but because it’s a good source of information and insight.
The “Top Ten” in the 2007 Forbes 400 (all estimates, according to the magazine, are conservative):
1. William H. Gates III
Worth: $59 billion
Age: 51; married, 3 children
Runs: Microsoft, Medina, WA
2. Warren Buffett
Worth: $52 billion
Age: 77; widowed, remarried, 3 children
Runs: Brookshire Hathaway, Omaha, NB
3. Sheldon Adelson
Worth: $28 billion
Age: 74; divorced, remarried, 5 children
Runs: Casinos, Las Vegas, NV
4. Lawrence Ellison
Worth: $26 billion
Age: 63; thrice divorced, remarried, 2 children
Runs: Oracle, Redwood City, CA
5. Sergey Brin
Worth: $18.5 billion
Age: 34; married
Runs: Google, Palo Alto, CA
6. Larry Page
Worth: $18.5 billion
Age: 34; single
Runs: Google, San Francisco, CA
7. Kirk Kerkorian
Worth: $18 billion
Age: 90; thrice divorced, 2 children
Runs: Casinos, Investments, Las Vegas, NV & L.A., CA
8. Michael Dell
Worth: $17.2 billion
Age: 42; married, 4 children
Runs: Dell, Austin, TX
9. Charles Koch
Worth: $17 billion
Age: 71; married, 2 children
Runs: Oil, commodities, Wichita, KS
10. David Koch
Worth: $17 billion
Age: 67; married, 3 children
Runs: Oil, commodities, NYC, NY
Runs: Oil, commodities, NYC, NY
Some general statistics:
Oldest member of Forbes 400: John Simplot, 98
Youngest member of Forbes 400: John Arnold, 33
Members of Forbes 400 who are self-made: 270
Members of Forbes 400 who inherited their entire fortune: 74
Members of Forbes 400 who inherited a part of their fortune: 56
Greatest source of wealth, Forbes 400, 2007: investments
Greatest source of wealth, Forbes 400, 1982: oil
How Fast They Make $1,000:
Kirk Kerkorian: 3.5 seconds
David Geffen: 22.5 seconds
Oprah Winfrey: 31.5 seconds
Ralph Lauren: 39.5 seconds
Bill Gates Makes:
$16.4 million a day
$685,000 an hour
$11,400 a minute
$190 a second
Cost of Living Luxuriant:
Face Lift, 2006: $14,500
Face Lift, 2007: $17,000
Shoes, wingtip, John Lobb, London, 2006: $4,128
Shoes, wingtip, John Lobb, London, 2007: $4,566
Hatteras 80 Motor Yacht, 1,550hp Cat engine, 2006: $4,870,000
Hatteras 80 Motor Yacht, 1,550hp Cat engine, 2007: $5,118,000
Kinda puts you in your place, doesn’t it?
BZ
I thought Bill Gates was more of a liberal. Am I wrong? What political party is he affiliated with?
THAT’S SO NOT FAIR!!!! These guys could end hunger, poverty and war with a swipe of their checkbook… I can’t believe our government, they should take all their money and give it to everyone equally…..Liberal moment.
These guys were all probably the guys in school folks like me beat up,because they were “NerdY” or just plain annoying….
This list lets everyone know GOD has a sense of humor….Good one!
I have nothing but admiration and respect for ALL of the folks that have made money a non issue in their lives…Congratulations to all of them.
Wordsmith: I’m not entirely sure at all.
Bushwack: good point. I’m with you; we should just storm their houses and make them write checks for three days, emptying their accounts completely.
BZ
Actually, the estimates of their WEALTH are “conservative.” :^)
BZ
Man, am I SLOW. :^)
BZ
No Comment.
I see you found the pic of my new Bass Boat…
TF: yeah, how cool would that be?
BZ
I still have it made friend.
You mean Bill Gates has actually been able to spend money faster than he makes it? I knew that the Foundation he and his wife set up had gotten a chunk of cash… last I checked four years ago he was worth $67 Billion or so… and while a lot of that worth is MSFT stock, he still would be in that ballpark. Its almost like he is getting the Carnegie jitters and actually trying to leave something behind to remember him by, rather than the vicious business tactics he used.
And Mr. Gates did, indeed, quit Harvard along with Bill Allen. Coupla dropouts that formed a little company in Arizona… lots of pizza, midnight coding sessions, and a DWI for Bill back in the late ’70s. They actually had to *buy* DOS from a Seattle firm, so they could have *something* to show IBM when they came by for a visit looking for someone to partner with on their new ‘Project Chess’ in Florida. There were better coders that did actually make some money, enough to want to go out flying the day of the appointment (Gary Kildall), a company that put the IBM execs into plastic trays and put them through the production line (Atari), and major chip manufacturer that wanted IBM to change the entire architecture before they would work with them (Motorola). Then there was geeky Mr. Gates who showed up on time, treated IBM with respect, showed how he could work with them, and just wanted to sell DOS to others, too…. the rest, as they say, is history. Without him we would *still* be stuck with IBM. He deserves each and every cent just for that *alone*.
um, Oprah does think that she is ending hunger, poverty and war with a swipe of her checkbook. i flipped thru her magazine one day..she looks rather darkskinned doesnt she??? well, there was not one of those dark skinned persons in her magazine only the whitish ones….now, how could that be???