ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. To send flowers Without being asked, Mrs. Roberts volunteered her opinion that Ralph and Brian clicked as few business partners do. The Roberts Family Remembers Ralph J. Roberts. Sign up for service and obituary updates. Besides his son Brian, Mr. Roberts is survived by his wife, the host of the Comcast Network program Seeking Solutions With Suzanne, aimed at viewers 50 and older; two daughters, Catherine Clifton and Lisa Roberts; another son, Ralph Jr.; and eight grandchildren. In a statement to Comcast employees, his son, Brian L. Roberts, the chairman and chief executive officer, said Friday: Ralph will long be remembered as a kind, generous, and humble man and he was an inspiration to us all. He is also survived by his eight grandchildren. "It has been a dream come true for him - and for me," Brian Roberts told his father's biographer. Mr. Roberts later took jobs with the Muzak Corporation and the Pioneer Suspender Company, which sold mens belts and cologne. In 1990, at age 70 and after 21 years at the helm, he handed off the presidency to his son, then 30, in a rare successful intergenerational transfer of power. In the meantime, he and his wife had five children. The industry as we know it today that is generating enormous revenues and is the way that most American consumers get their television was invented by Ralph Roberts and these other cable barons, said Josh Bernoff, a media analyst. ''He gives more speeches than anyone who is asked,'' said one media executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity. '', Brian Roberts, on the other hand, seems to relish his public role. ''Ralph is tough,'' he says ruefully. Cancel any time, no strings attached. The culture of Comcast was important to him.". ''All this would never have happened in the arms of a second wife,'' according to Mr. Danco. . We would like to offer our sincere support to anyone coping with grief. Wife Suzanna died on April 20, 2020 age 98", Ralph J. Roberts, Comcast Corporation Founder and Chairman Emeritus, dies at age 95, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ralph_J._Roberts&oldid=1141863531, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 06:20. "I have never heard Ralph raise his voice - never, ever. "When?" "Ralph was a tough, hard businessman, but he never forgot his obligation to help others, help his community, and help Philadelphia. ''We used to take the children away with us every year to climb the Pyramids or something memorable to keep their attention,'' he said. [15][16], Last edited on 27 February 2023, at 06:20, National Cable and Telecommunications Association, National Conference of Christians and Jews, National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, New York Times: "Ralph Roberts, Cable TV Pioneer Who Built Comcast, Dies at 95", "Love: Suzanne (Fleisher) Roberts & Ralph J. Roberts", "Brian Roberts' Jewish Roots and Outsized Ambition Drive Comcast's Rise in Media", University of Pennsylvania Medicine: "About the Roberts", "Ralph Roberts, Cable TV Pioneer Who Built Comcast, Dies at 95", "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement", Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia: Our Hall of Fame, Eastern State Penitentiary: "Funders for the Synagogue Restoration", "Starring Role - From the boards to the funding, Suzanne Roberts lives for the stage", "Howard Gerstley Fleisher, 95, Businessman and Active Volunteer", Daily Finance: "Comcast's Brian Roberts: The low-key exec who leads a high-profile giant" By Jonathan Berr, The Cable Center: "Cable Hall of Fame Archives - Ralph J. Roberts, "Comcast founder Ralph Roberts dies at 95. The deal made Comcast the nations largest cable operator. Echovita Inc is a registered trademark. Executive vice president David L. Cohen jumped to Comcast in 2002 from a high-profile job as chairman of the Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll law firm. "These guys go out there and kill each other!". The couple celebrated 70 years of marriage in 2012. But if Brian were not up to it, he would not have stood a chance because you can't sacrifice all the people in the place for a poor manager. "His vision was always to create a little IBM," Rudnay said. "He was the greatest influence in my life and a joy for me to work side by side with for over three decades. Your entry has exceeded the maximum character limit. Throughout his life, Roberts was involved in numerous community and civic activities, serving the boards of the Council of Emeritus Directors of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Brandywine Museum and Conservancy, among others. Brian L. Roberts (born June 28, 1959) is an American billionaire businessman, and the chairman and CEO of Comcast, an American company providing cable, entertainment, and communications products and services which was founded by his father, Ralph J. Roberts. "I couldn't have done that if I didn't have any money. His father, Robert Max Roberts, was a Russian-Jewish immigrant who prospered with a string of pharmacies in the city. He had a way of leading and managing that is razor-smart, focused, intuitive, strong, but all with a velvet glove," said chief communications officer D'Arcy Rudnay. ''The children -- the family -- have continual discussions,'' he said during an interview in which he was joined by Brian, dressed like his father in a gray suit, black loafers, a white button-down shirt and red print tie. Mr. Roberts allowed himself an indulgence - the purchase of a farm in Chester County. Maybe it was losing both his parents before he was 21, living through the Depression, but somehow he became an optimist. With over 1,900 locations, Dignity Memorial providers proudly serve over 375,000 families a year. Start searching today using our powerful and intuitive search. Mr. Roberts would help with homework and listen to each of his five children. People who never had a financial problem in their lives can never understand what terror there is in that.''. "So much of what he is to the public is what he was to us. He was a killer dancer - the only thing he bragged about. spouse. The 1990's have been far tougher, as regulation and skepticism about the industry's future in the face of rival technologies hurt cable stocks. Throughout his career, he remained at the core a salesman and merchant, but one who took chances and could "see around corners" to anticipate the next new thing. The appeal was the Roberts team, the challenge, and the firm's culture. This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. Intrigued by the nascent cable industrys potential and aided by Mr. Aaron and Julian Brodsky, a Philadelphia accountant, Mr. Roberts decided to invest, overcoming his own initial misgivings and the even stronger doubts of his wife, Suzanne, who, he said, thought he was absolutely crazy., The cable business, you put up a tower, you run a line down through the telephone poles, you charge everybody $5 a month, and you dont do anything, so it didnt seem very appealing to me, Mr. Roberts recalled in receiving a television industry award in 2003. That was extremely important to him, that we would sit around the table - all seven of us. Less than $5 per month Though his father called Comcast a family business, Brian was the only one of the children to show a serious interest in working with his father. (66 years old). "Our city has lost a wonderful champion with his passing.". Comcast is also one of the largest residential telephone providers in the United States. In the first days of Comcast, when colleagues Dan Aaron and Julian Brodsky clashed over how to expand the business, Mr. Roberts acted as the cheerful referee. can stop at any time. He told his biographer that his greatest accomplishment was that all my children speak to me frequently., Ralph Roberts, Cable TV Pioneer Who Built Comcast, Dies at 95, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/20/business/media/ralph-roberts-cable-tv-pioneer-who-built-comcast-dies-at-95.html. Then in 1941, after seeing him twirling with another dance partner, she "grabbed Ralph, took him out on the golf course, and said, 'I want to marry you.' As Comcast prospered, so did the Roberts family. BEST DEAL! Echovita offers a solidarity program that gives back the funds generated to families. That was evident earlier this month when Brian Roberts and the founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, struck a deal in which Microsoft agreed to pay $1 billion for an 11.5 percent stake in Comcast. And if there is any disagreement, they can always talk it out. Authorize the publication of the original written obituary with the accompanying photo. He was 95. It also locked up broadcast rights to the Phillies. It shows the power of Ralph's influence, that he has been able to keep that feeling alive over 50 years," Cohen said. "But I don't think I'll be seeing too many more," he said. Ralph J. Roberts, 95, the soft-spoken visionary who in 1963 bought a tiny subscriber-TV system in Tupelo, Miss., and built it into Comcast Corp., the nation's leading cable company, died Thursday night in Philadelphia. He did this by encouraging free-flowing discussion, then focusing the issue with probing questions. He recalled in a 1996 interview digging up his mother's marigolds and selling them to the neighbors. For example, it was Brian Roberts who was on the board of Turner Broadcasting before Time Warner bought it in 1996, and it was Brian who was president of the National Cable Television Association's board in 1995. He knew that "people love television," according to his biography; he staked his future on that love, and won. After graduating from Parkrose High School in 1968, Doug attended Willamette University, then he graduated with a BA and Masters in Public . Family-business experts say the family is something of an anomaly in devising a smooth transfer between generations. His father's greatest skill, he said, ''is the ability to make the hard decision at the crucial moment.''. Ralph has been the heart and soul of Comcast for 50 years, and his integrity, honesty and respect for everyone around him will never be forgotten. Published. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. "Our city has lost a wonderful champion," Nutter said in a statement. He owned various companies, including Pioneer Suspenders, which marketed wallets and belts for men. He evolved and personalized his relationship for each of my siblings," Brian Roberts said. founded Comcast Corp. with the purchase of a 1,200-subscriber cable television system in Tupelo, Mississippi in 1963, died Thursday night of natural causes in Philadelphia. I believe the reason we are still in this business when so many others have long since departed was his will to succeed, and to do it with certain core values and integrity. Mr. Roberts, who had been in declining health, died of natural causes. . Then he turned the company over to his son at an early age. [4] In 1998, the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia inducted Roberts into their Hall of Fame. The former husband of Linda (Phillips) Roberts of Huntington, NY, he was the father of Leslie Roberts of Huntington and Daniel Roberts of Portland, OR. I didn't want it to appear that he was just his father's son.''. "Ralph, the patient, unassuming gentleman, kept a steady hand on the wheel as they made a series of brilliant bets on the future," his son said in the biography. He was needed there because of his business acumen, his superiors said. He graduated with an economics degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Navy as World War II was beginning, serving at the Philadelphia Navy Yard for the duration of the war. And her husband reminisced about family trips. The couple created the Suzanne Roberts Theatre at 480 S. Broad St. in her honor. Ralph J. Roberts, the man whofounded Comcast Corp. with the purchase of a 1,200-subscriber cable television system in Tupelo, Mississippi in 1963, died Thursday night of natural causes in Philadelphia. It is amazing. CANDLE HAS BEEN LIT CANDLES HAVE BEEN LIT, We are reviewing your submission. Suzanne Roberts. Later, as a college student, he bought eggs from farms in New Jersey and peddled them to fraternities at a discount. JUST as important, family-business experts say the apparent harmony within the Roberts family bodes well for the chances of a smooth transition. He felt, 'This doesn't have to be about me.' On the contrary, he says, ''Brian takes the lead and is the one forging ahead and trying to figure out where they are going,'' Mr. Maffei said. If he hadn't, his father confesses, ''I probably would have sold the company. A few weeks ago, the five Roberts children -- leaving behind both mates and children -- spent a day with their parents for freewheeling talks on everything from personal concerns to financial matters. chief executive, Jeffrey R. Immelt, that the deal would be completed. He was a gentle soul with an infectious spirit who will be greatly missed. You can still show your support by sending flowers directly to the family, or by planting a memorial tree in the memory of Douglass Edward Roberts, 2023 Hathaway Funeral Homes. Moving to Germantown with his family from New Rochelle, N.Y., after his father's death, he graduated from Germantown High School and in 1941 from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he received a bachelor's degree. He was 95. in memory of Douglass Edward Roberts, please visit our floral store. Ralph is survived by Suzanne Roberts, his wife of over 70 years. A result was Microsoft's $1 billion investment in Comcast. Your entry has exceeded the maximum character limit. Besides his son Brian, Mr. Roberts is survived by his wife, the host of the Comcast Network program "Seeking Solutions With Suzanne," aimed at viewers 50 and older; two daughters, Catherine. The magic words, according to Mr. Roberts, were "Yes, dear.". Under Brian Roberts, Comcast has built on its standing as a cable television power to become a media and entertainment giant in content creation and Internet and voice services. While building Comcast, he built an economic engine for the city of Philadelphia as well.". But the firm wasn't always a giant, nor was its founder a scion. Sign Up Today! Ralph J. Roberts. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Questions? ''I was probably the one to pull the curtain,'' he said. Many entrepreneurs are very secretive. Douglas Scott was born April 8,1958 to Joe Nathan Scott and Mona (nee Page) Scott. In 1942, he married Suzanne Fleisher, an aspiring actress from a well-to-do Philadelphia family. "Ralph was a remarkable man who touched the lives of so many people. ", Mr. Roberts met his wife at a dance in 1937 when he was 17, she 16. ", Mayor Nutter called Mr. Roberts a "consummate gentleman, kind and gentle husband and father, and a great business leader.". Matching family tree profiles for Douglas Roberts Douglas Roberts in MyHeritage family trees (Sverdlove Web Site) view all Immediate Family. Most recently, Roberts and his wife, Suzanne, received the Philadelphia Award to highlight their lifetime contributions to the city in business, philanthropy, and arts and culture. A Visitation will be held on Friday, March 3 from 10 am 12 pm at Drake and Son Funeral Home, 5303 North Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625. In 1963, Mr. Roberts was a little-known entrepreneur who had sold Muzak systems and mens belts and suspenders, but he was ambitious and always scouting for new business opportunities. Jun 19, 2015. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.stonefuneralhomeupland.com for the ROBERTS family. "Ralph was always 'Ralph' to his rank-and-file employees, and a great listener who always checked his ego at the door. Once the elder Mr. Roberts is out of the picture at Comcast, Wall Street will be watching closely to see whether the son can be as tough and decisive as his father. I never felt that Comcast was a sixth child," she said. Brian Roberts said his parents tried to make life stimulating and eye-opening for their children. IT helps, of course, that only one of the children desperately wanted to follow in Dad's footsteps. Mr. Gates was warm to the idea. He was preceded in death by his father, Joe Nathan Scott, and his brother, Jonathan Scott. '', Or an arrogant one. His plan is to turn over the votes to Brian but make sure to divide the financial pie fairly among all the offspring. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. ''Every chance I get I step back and say, 'Here is Brian.' This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. He credits his mother for pulling the family through hard times. That was hardly a coincidence. Even as he is promoting his son, the elder Mr. Roberts is looking after the financial interests of his other children. The Gettys or that family in Texas,'' he continued, referring to Harold Simmons, the Texas investor who is at war with his daughters. Douglas Alan Roberts Sept. 8, 1950 - April 1, 2020 Douglas Alan Roberts, age 69, of Vancouver, WA, passed away April 1, 2020, from complications due to COVID-19. "That's what he stood for. The soft-spoken, affable Mr. Roberts never acquired the outsize public profile of cable pioneers like Ted Turner, John C. Malone, Charles F. Dolan and John Rigas, but his impact was comparable to theirs in making cable television a culture-changing industry giving viewers hundreds of channels, where they once had little more than a dozen, and persuading them to pay for something that had always been free. Mr. Roberts has been married to his wife, Suzanne, for 54 years. It also sells those services to businesses. 2023 SCI SHARED RESOURCES, LLC. ", "He's the same person as my boss that he has been as a dad; he's gracious, never interrupts when you're talking. Overnight, it went from 18th to fifth among cable firms in the United States, with two million customers. [4] He was awarded honorary degrees from both Holy Family College and the University of Pennsylvania, where he received their Joseph P. Wharton Award. ''Brian is the more active participant.''. Send a note, share a story or upload a photo. . ", "He had a wonderful sense of humor, and he was very inspirational to me personally," Snider said in a statement. 2023 WWB Holdings, LLC. To be sure, he adds, ''At an important fork in the road, Brian will go off to his father'' to get the older man's stamp of approval. We'll automatically email you when obituaries are added that match your search query. Later, the two men found themselves in the same restaurant, and Mr. Roberts suggested that Microsoft consider investing in cable. Fleisher. His main goal at the time was to make a lot of money. ''When some guy decides that he is so important that he dismisses Mama for some 35-year-old trophy, then I don't know what is fair. Flush with cash, Comcast went on a buying spree in the mid-1980s, acquiring part of the Group W cable system. These early losses, coupled with experiences as a young salesman of golf clubs, men's accessories, cologne, and Muzak, gave Mr. Roberts an ambitious, entrepreneurial spirit. Despite that, Mr. Roberts named the club the Bob Hope Centric putter and began selling it around the country. It's been a real pleasure for the whole family," he said in 1999. He was born Sept. 8, 1950 to Robert and Blanche Roberts in Portland. Genealogy for Douglas Roberts (1960 - 2011) family tree on Geni, with over 230 million profiles of ancestors and living relatives. Comcast's decision in late April to abandon its $45 billion deal to buy Time Warner Cable Inc. was a rare misstep for the company and a trimming of its ambitions for the moment. He had resided in Leesburg for the past two years. In one generation, he started a company that is one of the 50 biggest companies in the U.S.," said Burke, one of a second wave of executives to join Comcast 15 years ago. A Visitation will be held on Friday, March 3 from 10 am - 12 pm at Drake and Son Funeral Home, 5303 North Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625. Contributions may be made to the Germantown Boys and Girls Club, 25 W. Penn St., Philadelphia 19144, or the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, 1709 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia 19103, or at http://unitedforimpact.org/ways-to-give. "As a person, his DNA is all over our company. A Funeral Service will begin at Noon at . He was born on January 6, 1955 in Tampa, Florida, the son of Terrance Andrew Roberts, Sr. and Geraldine (Boyce) Thompson. He will always be remembered for his generosity, integrity, honesty, kindness and respect for everyone around him. But the elder Mr. Roberts has probably come as close as any company founder can to setting the stage for an orderly succession. "I will really miss him. Only his fourth child, Brian, is at Comcast, the. Like many other cable companies, Comcast peaked in late 1993, at $28.17 a share. Roberts, Craig Mort, Brenda Bachura, Bill McMenemy, and Peter McMenemy. Ralph Joel Roberts was born on March 13, 1920, in New York City, and was an entrepreneur from an early age. They are not your blood family, but you spend so much time with them, you should treat them like family. Though many aging entrepreneurs resist relinquishing power despite all their promises to do so, Comcast has begun notifying local cable commissions of the pending change of control, which Ralph Roberts said would be no later than early next year. In a family business, even the strongest allegiances can crack under the strain of a mismanaged transition at the top, but people familiar with Comcast say the younger Mr. Roberts is proving his mettle. He wants the other person to always feel good, whatever the exchange is. Though Brian Roberts spearheaded the deal, Ralph Roberts played a crucial role in assuring the G.E. He was 95. ''I have never seen a relationship that could surpass the two of them,'' she said. Brian, born in 1959, was the fourth. '', The son got the point. I lived at home.'' The importance of saying "I love you" during COVID-19, Effective ways of dealing with the grieving process, Solutions to show your sympathy safely during the Covid-19 pandemic. And all of them are rich. The recent deal was begun when the executive committee of Cablelabs, the cable industry's research and development arm that included Brian Roberts and John Malone, chairman of Tele-Communications Inc., the country's largest cable operator, visited Microsoft in late April. As the years passed, Mr. Roberts, with his shock of white hair and signature bow tie, made sure that Comcast's homey values remained in place. And Ed Snider, Comcast Spectacor chairman, said Mr. Roberts was "a great partner and an even greater friend. "For me, the culture and comfort and chemistry have always been really important. ''It has been wonderful to share those tense moments with your father,'' Brian Roberts said, ''and hopefully, it has prepared me for the future. ''Ralph and Julian have been intimately involved, but Ralph doesn't sit there until 4 A.M. in the lawyers' offices anymore. But during the Depression, Mr. Roberts recalled, ''my father died, and we lost all our money. Ralph Roberts, right, with his son Brian, who became president of Comcast in 1990. [1], When Roberts was five the family moved to New Rochelle, New York and then after his father died of a heart-attack, to Germantown, Philadelphia when he was seventeen to live with his stepfather Harry Bobrow, of Bobrow Brothers Cigars. RALPH ROBERTS, the dapper 77-year-old founder of the Comcast Corporation, loves to follow the ups and downs of other family businesses and try to figure out what makes some thrive and others implode. And experts say the odds of a successful transition are greater at Comcast than at most family businesses. The Roberts clan's equity stake in Comcast, based in Philadelphia, is worth at least $470 million without a premium, and once the patriarch and his wife pass from the scene, there is no guarantee the heirs won't hurl themselves into a fierce battle for the spoils. It is always business. He is survived by : his parents, Terrance Andrew Roberts, Sr. and Geraldine Thompson (Boyce); his children, Sarah Roberts-Hanna, Katherine Allen, Sabrina McComas and Daniel Roberts; his grandchildren, Harper, Emily and Taylor; and his siblings, Danny Roberts and Charmaine Hankins. ''I would see Ralph about once a year. At the time of his death, Mr. Roberts was past president and chairman emeritus of the public company, which has its headquarters on John F. Kennedy Boulevard. One early venture was selling an innovative golf putter. He is steel. [2], Roberts has been credited with expanding Comcast into the largest cable television company in the United States. Douglass Edward Roberts, 69, a lifelong resident of Swansea and the son of the late Edward Francis Roberts and Barbara (Douglass) Roberts, passed away on December 25, 2019. After Robert Roberts died in 1932, Ralphs mother, Sara, moved the family to the Germantown section of Philadelphia, to be near her ailing sister. 1-800-896-5587 (Mon-Fri, 7am-6pm MDT) Annual Membership . Most of his pay, he said, came from $43 million in profit from expiring stock options he had to exercise. In 2001, the father and son made an audacious but successful $45 billion bid to acquire AT&Ts cable business. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. He graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and served four years in the U.S. Navy. [13][14], Roberts made an appearance on TLC's reality series Cake Boss, receiving a cake for his 90th birthday. After Brian received an undergraduate business degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1981, Ralph Roberts tried to steer him to another company, where he would have to fight his own battles. Comfort the family with flowers or a sympathy gift. He loved his work and all those who worked with him and for him. Mr. Roberts, typically dapper in his signature bow tie and Brooks Brothers suits, became his sons mentor and sounding board, and the two were admired as a potent business partnership while never displaying the kind of strained and tempestuous relationship that can flare when a son succeeds a successful father. IN THE CARE OF. ''It is the same thing as giving birth -- or having another generation. The memory of the fiasco still rankles Mr. Diller. Mr. Roberts has reason to track the way family-run companies pass the baton from one generation to next. "That culture says that you have to care about the people you work with. to the family or plant a tree Burke watched the father-son team when Mr. Roberts was chairman and his son president, and found their interplay businesslike and seamless. PHILADELPHIA-- ( BUSINESS WIRE )--Today we are deeply saddened to announce that Ralph J. 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