Arthur Rock
Arthur Rock.jpg
Arthur Rock in January 2003
Born (1926-08-19) August 19, 1926 (age 96)
Rochester, New York, U.S.
Alma materSyracuse University (BA, 1948)
Harvard University (MBA, 1951)
OccupationVenture capitalist
Known forearly investor in Intel, Apple Computer
SpouseToni Rembe

Arthur Rock (born August 19, 1926) is an American businessman and investor. Based in Silicon Valley, California, he was an early investor in major firms including Intel, Apple, Scientific Data Systems and Teledyne.[1]

Early life

Rock was born and raised in Rochester, New York, in a Jewish family.[2][3][4] He was an only child and his father owned a small candy store where Rock worked as a youth.[4] He joined the U.S. Army during World War II but the war ended before he was deployed.[4] He then went to college on the G.I. Bill.[4] He graduated with a Bachelor's degree in business administration from Syracuse University in 1948 and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1951.[5]

Career

Rock started his career in 1951 as a securities analyst in New York City, and then joined the corporate finance department of Hayden, Stone & Company in New York, where he focused on raising money for small high-technology companies.[6] In 1957, when the "traitorous eight" left Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory, Rock was the one who helped them find a place to go: he convinced Sherman Fairchild to start Fairchild Semiconductor.[7]

In 1961, he moved to California. Along with Thomas J. Davis Jr., he formed the San Francisco venture capital firm Davis & Rock.[8]

Rock was a member of Apple Inc.'s board when Steve Jobs was ousted in the mid 1980s.[9]

In 2003, Rock donated $25 million to the Harvard Business School to establish the Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship.[6]

Politics

Rock has donated to many political causes, especially in the area of education. He has donated to more than 30 school board elections across the country. Recently, in 2021, he donated over $500,000 to the 2022 San Francisco Board of Education recall elections.[10]

Awards

Personal life

He is married to lawyer Toni Rembe.[12] Together with his wife, Rock has been a supporter of Teach For America. The organization's annual Social Innovation Award is named in their honor.[13]

Rock was portrayed by actor J. K. Simmons in the 2013 biographical drama Jobs.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Arthur Rock (MBA '51) - Alumni - Harvard Business School". December 1997. Archived from the original on 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  2. ^ "Among America's Mega- Donors, Many Jews, but Few Gifts to Jews". Jewish Telegraph Agency. February 24, 2004. Archived from the original on July 5, 2018.
  3. ^ Video on YouTube
  4. ^ a b c d Harvard Business School: "ARTHUR ROCK" retrieved October 8, 2015 Archived September 24, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ Interview with Rob Walker Archived 2003-08-11 at the Wayback Machine on November 12, 2002 as part of The Silicon Genesis Project Archived 2004-11-22 at the Wayback Machine with Stanford University
  6. ^ a b "Harvard Business School Receives $25 Million from Venture Capitalist Arthur Rock" (Press release). Harvard Business School. 2003-01-31. Archived from the original on 17 April 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
  7. ^ "Arthur Rock". HBS Bulletin Online. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
  8. ^ "Arthur Rock: Executive Profile & Biography - Businessweek". investing.businessweek.com. Archived from the original on 4 June 2013. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
  9. ^ "Profile - Entrepreneurship - Harvard Business School". Archived from the original on 2018-03-28. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  10. ^ "Who is Arthur Rock, the school board recall's biggest backer?". 9 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2022-03-11.
  11. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  12. ^ "Stanford Launches the Arthur and Toni Rembe Rock Center for Corporate Governance" (Press release). Business Wire. 6 March 2006. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
  13. ^ "The Arthur & Toni Rembe Rock Social Innovation Award". Teach For America. Archived from the original on 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2020-02-06.

External links

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