Peter George Peterson
| Peter George Peterson | |
|---|---|
Peterson, 1972
|
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| Chairperson of the Council on Foreign Relations | |
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In office September 1, 1985 – June 30, 2007 |
|
| Preceded by | David Rockefeller |
| Succeeded by |
Carla Hills Robert Rubin |
| 20th United States Secretary of Commerce | |
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In office February 29, 1972 – February 1, 1973 |
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| President | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | Maurice Stans |
| Succeeded by | Frederick Dent |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
June 5, 1926 Kearney, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Kris Krengel (1948–1950) Sally Hornbogen (1953–1979) Joan Ganz Cooney (1980–present) |
| Children | 5, including Holly |
| Alma mater |
Northwestern University (BA) University of Chicago (MBA) |
Peter George "Pete" Peterson (Peter Petropoulos) (born June 5, 1926) is an American businessman, investment banker, philanthropist, and author, who served as United States Secretary of Commerce from February 29, 1972 to February 1, 1973. He is also known as founder and principal funder of The Peter G. Peterson Foundation, which he established in 2008 with a $1 billion endowment. The group focuses on raising public awareness about U.S. fiscal-sustainability issues related to federal deficits, entitlement programs, and tax policies. In recognition of his support, the influentialPeterson Institute for International Economics was named in his honor in 2006.
Before serving as Secretary of Commerce, Peterson was Chairman and CEO of Bell & Howell, from 1963 to 1971. From 1973 to 1984 he was Chairman and CEO of Lehman Brothers. In 1985 he co-founded the private equity firm, the Blackstone Group, which went public in 2007. Peterson was Chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations until retiring in 2007, after being named chairman emeritus. In 2008, Peterson was ranked 149th on the "Forbes 400 Richest Americans" with a net worth of $2.8 billion.
Peterson has been named the most influential billionaire in U.S. politics.
On August 4, 2010, it was announced that he had signed "The Giving Pledge." He was one of 40 billionaires, led by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, who agreed to give at least half their wealth to charity. Most of his giving has been to his own foundation, The Peter G. Peterson Foundation, which focuses on raising public awareness about long-term fiscal sustainability issues.
Peterson was born in Greece and came to America at 17 years of age, the son of Venet and George Peterson, Greek immigrants. His father opened and ran a diner in 1923 after changing his name from Georgios Petropoulos. After college, Peterson was first married from 1948 to 1950 to Kris Krengel, a journalism student at Northwestern University. In 1953, he married psychologist Sally Hornbogen Peterson with whom he had four sons: John Scott, James, David and Michael; and one daughter, the writer Holly Peterson. The Petersons divorced in 1979. The following year, Peterson married Joan Ganz Cooney, a creator of Sesame Street. In his autobiography he recalls his business and private life in which he blames himself for the failure of two of his three marriages but is now proud of having grown close to his children.
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