Ahmanson, William — Ahmanson Foundation
THE LATEST: The Ahmanson Foundation was established in 1952 by financier Howard F. Ahmanson, William’s great uncle, who was instrumental in the creation and launch of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Over the past 60 years, the foundation has donated more than $130 million worth of Italian, French, Dutch, Flemish and Spanish art. The foundation made waves in February by declaring it would cease making gifts of art to LACMA because current renovations may result in less gallery space for pieces from the museum’s permanent collections.
BACKGROUND: The Ahmanson Foundation supports arts and humanities, education, and health and human services in L.A. County. Before joining the organization, Ahmanson worked in banking and wealth management at Union Bank and Home Savings of America. In 2018 he received the Access to Justice Award from the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and in 2017 he was granted the Cardinal’s Award from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He serves on the boards of trustees at Caltech, Center Theater Group, LACMA and Loyola Marymount University.
YEARS ON LA500: 4
Annenberg, Wallis — Annenberg Foundation
THE LATEST: Annenberg continues to make connections for the Annenberg Foundation in the technology sector. The foundation’s Pledge L.A. partnership launched in 2018 as a forward-thinking coalition of venture capital and tech-industry leaders in connection with the foundation and Mayor Garcetti’s office. The coalition released the results of its first venture-capital survey in 2019. The foundation is home to AnnenbergTech, an initiative to help ignite philanthropy in L.A.’s burgeoning tech community.
BACKGROUND: Annenberg has been chairwoman of the Annenberg Foundation, which was created by her parents, since 2009. She has a long history in philanthropy, including education, communications, arts and culture, medical research, animal welfare, the environment, and social justice. She created the Annenberg Space for Photography in Century City, the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica, the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, the Universally-Accessible Treehouse in Torrance and the Wallis Annenberg Pet Space in Playa Vista. In 2019 she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Humane Society of the United States.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Berggruen, Nicolas — Berggruen Institute
THE LATEST: In 2019 Berggruen co-authored the book “Renovating Democracy: Governing in the Age of Globalization and Digital Capitalism” with institute co-founder Nathan Gardels. Gardels also serves as editor-in-chief of WorldPost, a partnership of the Berggruen Institute and the Washington Post. Currently operating out of downtown’s Bradbury Building, the institute’s planned 450-acre campus in the Santa Monica Mountains remains controversial as a commercial development in a fire-prone area.
BACKGROUND: Berggruen founded the institute in 2010 as a think tank to investigate global political and cultural issues including climate change, science and technology, and the economy. He sits on a number of museum boards, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Museum Berggruen in Berlin, which houses his late father’s art collection. Berggruen is a member of the international council for the J. Paul Getty Trust. He also is chairman of Berggruen Holdings, the investment vehicle of Nicolas Berggruen Charitable Trust.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Broad, Eli — The Broad Foundations
THE LATEST: Broad has turned his philanthropic efforts to climate change. In early 2020, Broad and his wife, Edythe, gave $9 million to support political candidates and leaders concerned with the climate-change crisis. The Broads have given more than $4 billion to education, science and the arts. They were also among the first to sign the Giving Pledge commitment to donate 75% of their wealth during their lifetimes.
BACKGROUND: Broad and his wife founded the Broad Art Foundation in 1984 and the Eli & Edythe Broad Foundation in 1999. The couple financed the $140 million Broad contemporary art museum in downtown to house the Broad art collections. The museum opened its doors in 2015, offering free admission to the permanent collections. Broad built two Fortune 500 companies, homebuilder KB Home and insurance firm Sun America Investments Inc., which was acquired by AIG. Broad retired from the Broad Foundation in 2017, turning over leadership to Gerun Riley.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Cuno, James — J. Paul Getty Trust
THE LATEST: In September, the Getty Trust announced it would invest $100 million in Ancient Worlds Now, a 10-year plan to support the preservation of global antiquities. Other recent initiatives include the 2019 acquisition of the archives of Claes Oldenburg and his collaborator and wife, Coosje van Bruggen. Also last year the Getty Institute provided a $5 million endowment to Britain’s Courtauld Institute of Art for a graduate program in wall-painting conservation.
BACKGROUND: Cuno has led the Getty Trust since 2011. Previously he served as president and Eloise W. Martin Director of the Art Institute of Chicago. He has worked as a director at the Courtauld Institute of Art and the University of London, the Harvard University Art Museums, and Dartmouth College’s Hood Museum of Art. He has taught art history and architecture at Harvard and Vassar College. The J. Paul Getty Trust, founded in 1948, operates the Getty Conservation Institute, Getty Foundation, the J. Paul Getty Museum and Getty Research Institute.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 3
Day, Robert — W.M. Keck Foundation
THE LATEST: Day is the grandson of Superior Oil founder William Myron Keck and oversees the Keck Foundation, one of the country’s largest philanthropic organizations, with assets of more than $1.2 billion. Day was No. 34 on the Business Journal’s Wealthiest Angelenos list in 2019 with a net worth of $2.2 billion.
BACKGROUND: Day graduated from Claremont McKenna College in 1965 and started his career with the investment banking firm White, Weld & Co. in New York. In 1971, he founded Trust Company of the West and served as chairman from 1971 through 2014. Day currently serves as a director of Freeport-McMoRan Inc., a member of the Board of Governors of the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, a member of the Board of Overseers at Keck School of Medicine at USC and a member of the Board of Trustees and Board Chair Emeritus at Claremont McKenna College.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 1
Geffen, David — David Geffen Co.
THE LATEST: In February, Geffen sold the Jack Warner Estate in Beverly Hills to Amazon’s Jeff Bezos for $165 million. The 1,000-seat Geffen Theater, funded by a $25 million gift from Geffen, will be a centerpiece of the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, slated to open in December on Museum Row.
BACKGROUND: Geffen’s first job was in the mailroom at the William Morris Agency. From that humble beginning, he rose to the position of talent agent, representing musicians such as Crosby Stills and Nash. In 1972, he founded Asylum Records and then went on to start Geffen Records. Geffen partnered with Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg in 1994 to launch SKG film studio. His philanthropic efforts include the Geffen Academy at UCLA, Westwood’s Geffen Playhouse and David Geffen Hall at New York’s Lincoln Center. His 2017 gift of $150 million to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art was the largest in the museum’s history.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Govan, Michael — Los Angeles County Museum of Art
THE LATEST: LACMA is in the process of building a new, state-of-the-art facility for its permanent collection. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Peter Zumthor, the building will cost a reported $750 million. In January, the museum announced it had secured a $50 million pledge from the Los Angeles-based W.M. Keck Foundation, raising total commitments to $640 million. Critics of the plan have noted the new building will have 10,000 square feet less than the current museum layout. LACMA plans to open the new building in 2024.
BACKGROUND: Govan joined the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as chief executive officer and Wallis Annenberg director in 2006. In the role, Govan oversees art programming as well as the ongoing expansion and upgrade of the museum’s 20-acre campus. During his tenure, LACMA has acquired more than 56,000 works for the permanent collection, doubled gallery space and programs, and more than doubled its average attendance to over 1 million visitors annually.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Guerin, Vera — Cedars-Sinai Foundation
THE LATEST: From 2013 to 2017, Guerin served as chairwoman of the venerable Cedars-Sinai Foundation, which was founded in 1902. Guerin is still active with the organization. She has also served as president of the Cedars-Sinai Foundation. Guerin ranked No. 44 on the Business Journal’s most recent list of Wealthiest Angelenos with a net worth of $1.7 billion.
BACKGROUND: Guerin became a billionaire when her father sold his stake in homebuilder Shappell Industries for $1.6 billion in 2013. Multimillion-dollar gifts from Guerin to Cedars-Sinai have supported the Cedars-Sinai Women’s Guild Lung Institute, the Vera and Paul Guerin Family Congenital Heart Program and two academic chairs in pulmonary medicine and pediatric neurosurgery. She also supports Cedars-Sinai’s Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion. Guerin also has produced theatrical runs of “Leap of Faith” and “Amadeus.”
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Hernández, Antonia — California Community Foundation
THE LATEST: In preparation for the 2020 Census, the California Community Foundation last September awarded $7 million in grants to local nonprofits for education and outreach across the region. A second wave of funding for the Get Out the Count education effort in December brought the year’s total investment in the project to $12.5 million.
BACKGROUND: Hernández joined the California Community Foundation — which partners with more than 1,600 individual, family and corporate donors — in 2004. One of Southern California’s largest philanthropic organizations, the foundation holds assets of more than $1.7 billion. During her tenure Hernández has focused on health, housing and immigration programs. Previously, Hernández served as president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. She began her legal career as a staff attorney with the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice and worked as counsel to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 4
Kramer, Bill — Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
THE LATEST: Kramer was named director of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in October, replacing its first director, Kerry Brougher. Following numerous delays, the new facility is scheduled to open Dec. 14 at an estimated cost of $482 million. Designed by architects Renzo Piano and Zoltan Pali, the museum incorporates the historic May Co. building on Wilshire Boulevard.
BACKGROUND: Kramer oversees all aspects of the museum’s management, including staffing, design, curation, fundraising and creative direction. He spent the previous five years serving as the project’s managing director of development and external affairs, raising $250 million to move the project into construction and managing its public approvals and planning. Previously, Kramer worked in various senior management and fundraising roles for the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Southern California Institute of Architecture, the California Institute of the Arts, the Sundance Institute, the Columbia University School of the Arts and the Rhode Island School of Design.
YEARS ON LA500: 1
Lansing, Sherry — Sherry Lansing Foundation
THE LATEST: Veteran Hollywood executive Lansing had a long career in the movie business, but she’s had an equally lengthy run supporting a variety of worthwhile causes. The Sherry Lansing Foundation, launched in 2005, is dedicated to cancer research, health, public education and career opportunities. In March, according to NBC News, Lansing held a Hollywood fundraiser at her Bel-Air home for former vice president Joe Biden.
BACKGROUND: During almost 30 years in the movie business, Lansing was involved in the production, marketing and distribution of more than 200 films, including Academy Award winners “Forrest Gump,” “Braveheart” and “Titanic.” In 1980, she became the first woman to head a major film studio when she was appointed president of 20th Century Fox. She served as chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures for 12 years before founding the Sherry Lansing Foundation. Additionally, Lansing serves on the boards of the Broad Center, the Broad museum, the Carter Center, Encore.org, the Entertainment Industry Foundation and the W.M. Keck Foundation. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Northwestern University.
YEARS ON LA500: 5
Meyer, Bruce — Petersen Automotive Museum Foundation
THE LATEST: Although the Petersen Automotive Museum was forced to close its doors because of the coronavirus pandemic, the institution quickly ramped up its digital offerings to compensate. The museum is providing virtual tours of its vault and a number of other offerings to online visitors.
BACKGROUND: Beverly Hills real estate investor Meyer teamed with Hot Rod magazine publisher Robert Petersen and his wife, Margie, to open the Petersen museum in 1994. Located in the Miracle Mile, the museum went through a 13-month, $90 million renovation in 2015 and expanded to 95,000 square feet of exhibit space. In the 1970s, Meyer persuaded his family to expand its Gearys Beverly Hills store into a successful mail-order business that focused on luxury gifts and housewares. Meyer sits on the boards of the Henry Ford Museum, St. John’s Health Center Foundation and CHP 11-99 Foundation. He is a member of the Bonneville 200 MPH Club, an organization that recognizes land-speed records.
YEARS ON LA500: 5
Milken, Lowell — Milken Family Foundation
THE LATEST: This year marks the 20th anniversary of the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching, which Lowell Milken founded and chairs. NIET’s Teaching Standards Rubric is currently used by eight states and is being integrated into teacher-preparation programs at more than 75 colleges and universities.
BACKGROUND: Focused primarily on education reform, businessman turned philanthropist Milken chairs London-based Heron International Ltd., a property development and investment company, and the Milken Family Foundation, which he co-founded with his brother Michael. The brothers also created early childhood education provider Knowledge Universe Education and spun off its Knowledge Schools subsidiary in 2015 for $1.3 billion. Milken received his law degree from UCLA, which houses the Lowell Milken Institute for Business Law and Policy.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Milken, Michael — Milken Institute
THE LATEST: In February, Milken redirected the Milken Institute’s 10 centers around the world to focus on confronting the Covid-19 crisis. In his new podcast series, “Responding to Covid 19: Conversations with Mike Milken,” the former financier interviews individuals at the forefront of the pandemic. When it opens in 2021, the Milken Institute’s new Center for Advancing the American Dream in Washington, D.C., will provide access to education, job training and health care as well as foster entrepreneurialism and innovation.
BACKGROUND: An early advocate of high-yield “junk bonds,” Milken accumulated a massive fortune in the 1970s and ’80s and founded the Milken Family Foundation in 1982 to support medical research. Milken turned more fully to philanthropy after a prison term for securities fraud in the early 1990s. He founded the Milken Institute, a Santa Monica-based nonprofit focused on health care, in 1991.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Moore, Rachel — Music Center
THE LATEST: The Music Center in October renewed Moore’s contract for five years. In August, the Music Center opened the “Plaza for All” following a 20-month, $41 million renovation of its central plaza, a project spearheaded by Moore. The site features a restaurant, coffee shop, wine bar, gardens and interactive installations. In April, Moore was named as a 2020 inductee into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
BACKGROUND: Moore leads the $65 million company that manages the Music Center campus and operates Grand Park on behalf of Los Angeles County. In addition, she oversees The Music Center’s work as a presenter and curator of programming. Moore also guides The Music Center’s multi-faceted arts education initiatives aimed at youth across Southern California. She came to the Music Center in 2015 from the American Ballet Theatre, where she had served as chief executive since 2011 and as executive director since 2004. Moore danced with ABT from 1984 to 1988.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Philbin, Ann — Hammer Museum at UCLA
THE LATEST: The Hammer Museum is undergoing a $90 million redesign led by L.A. architect Michael Maltzan. Due for completion in 2022, the expansion will create 60% more gallery space and is designed to attract a wider array of visitors.
BACKGROUND: Since being named director of the Hammer in 1999, Philbin has overseen the formation of the Hammer Contemporary Collection, which holds more than 2,000 artworks. In addition, Philbin has overseen substantial renovations to the museum’s building, including completion of the 300-seat Billy Wilder Theater and the museum café. Under Philbin’s direction, the museum instituted the internationally acclaimed Hammer Projects, a series of more than 100 contemporary exhibitions and installations. In 2014, Philbin eliminated admission fees for the museum, which produces more than 300 free public programs annually.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 3
Riley, Gerun — Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation
THE LATEST: Riley has overseen major gifts from the Broad Foundation, including three in 2019 totaling $30 million for the foundation’s stem cell research centers at UCLA, USC and UC San Francisco. In December the foundation gave $100 million to establish a free master’s degree program for emerging public school leaders and executives. To address the pandemic, the foundation stepped provided grants to the L.A. Emergency Covid-19 Crisis Fund, the Angeleno Campaign, the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation and One Family Los Angeles.
BACKGROUND: Riley joined the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation in 2003 in an entry-level administrative post and served as chief of staff, vice president and senior vice president before her appointment as president in 2016. She oversees the foundation’s activities and investments in education, scientific and medical research, and arts institutions. Riley has been a part of key foundation programs, including the Broad Prize for Urban Education and the opening of downtown’s The Broad museum of contemporary art.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 2
Simril, Renata — LA84 Foundation
THE LATEST: Simril oversees the LA84 Foundation, which was set up with the surplus from the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics to invest in youth sports programs, infrastructure, research and education in underserved communities across Southern California. In addition, she serves on the boards of United Way of Greater Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission and the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.
BACKGROUND: A third-generation Angeleno, Simril was senior vice president and chief of staff to the publisher at the Los Angeles Times before joining the LA84 Foundation in 2016. She also spent three years with the Los Angeles Dodgers as senior vice president of external affairs. During the administration of Mayor James Hahn, she served as deputy mayor for economic development and housing. While working for City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, Simril helped rebuild communities in South L.A. after the 1992 riots. She also served in the Army as a military police officer. Simril is a member of the Los Angeles Unified School District Advisory Task Force. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Loyola Marymount and a master’s degree from USC.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 5
Smith, Chad — Los Angeles Philharmonic Association
THE LATEST: After the October 2019 announcement of his promotion from chief operating officer to CEO of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Smith made the decision to step away as artistic director of the Ojai Festival. In early April, Smith announced that the rest of the Philharmonic’s 2019-2020 season would be canceled because of the pandemic. And in May he said summer seasons for the Hollywood Bowl and the Ford Theatres would be canceled as well.
BACKGROUND: Smith began his career in 2000 at the New World Symphony, where he worked with conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. He first joined the L.A. Phil in 2002. After briefly serving as the New York Philharmonic’s head artistic planner, Smith returned to the L.A. Philharmonic as vice president of artistic planning, a position he held until being named chief operating officer in 2015. A trustee of the New England Conservatory, he also serves on the advisory board of the Music Academy of the West and is a member of the executive committee for the Avery Fisher Artist Program. Smith earned a BA in European history from Tufts University as well.
YEARS ON THE LA 500: 1
