Businessman, Jewish advocate Bronfman dies

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

NEW YORK (AP) - Edgar M. Bronfman Sr., the billionaire businessman and longtime president of the World Jewish Congress, which lobbied the Soviets to allow Jews to emigrate and helped spearhead the search for hidden Nazi loot, died Saturday. He was 84.

The Canadian-born Bronfman died at his New York home surrounded by family, according to the family charity he led, The Samuel Bronfman Foundation.

Bronfman made his fortune with his family's Seagram's liquor empire, taking over as chairman and CEO in 1971 and continuing the work of his father, Samuel. Under Bronfman's leadership, Seagram expanded its offerings and was eventually acquired by French media and telecom group Vivendi Universal in 2000.

But Bronfman's wealth, combined with his role in the World Jewish Congress, an umbrella group of Jewish organizations in some 80 countries that he led for more than a quarter century, allowed him to be a tireless advocate for his fellow Jews.

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20131222/DAAR9P8G0.html

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In this Aug. 11, 1999 file photo, President Clinton, right, awards the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, to Edgar M. Bronfman at a ceremony held in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Bronfman, a Canadian born billionaire and longtime World Jewish Congress president died Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013, in New York, at the age of 84. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

[warrant46]

1. Suppliers to the mob of booze during Prohibition

Like a certain family in Mass.

[egold2604]

2. Seagrams ended up owning 30% of DuPont when DuPont bought Conoco

A friend worked at DuPont when DuPont was trying to buy Conoco. Bronfman heard about it and started a greenmail campaign. When the smoke cleared, DuPont owned Conoco and Seagrams owned 30% of both companies. My friend, who was Jewish, was an internal business analysis and often made presentations to the Executive Board. One day Edgar passed him in the halls and said I can't believe I bought this goyish company. They are happy with 4% pre-tax earnings. My friend reminded him that 4% of $45billion was still a lot of money.

The long story short, DuPont paid billions of dollars to get rid of Seagrams ownership and Edgar's constant harping about low profits and inefficiency.