A Visit with the Secretary of Commerce
February 22, 2012
I attended a small luncheon a few days ago with the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation. Their guest speaker was U.S. Secretary of Commerce John Bryson, who discussed the many opportunities – and challenges – involved with America’s growing trade relationship with China. Sec. Bryson addressed questions about streamlining the process for Chinese professionals to obtain the necessary visas to work in the U.S., as well as longstanding concerns over the protection of Intellectual Property. These are important subjects and it was a stimulating discussion.
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Gary Winnick Discusses “Unsung Heroes”
December 21, 2011
In 1996 a man named Lod Cook called and asked to see me. I couldn’t imagine what he wanted to talk about but I knew very well who he was. Whenever a President of the United States – Democrat or Republican – visited Los Angeles, it was Lod they wanted to see first. Queen Elizabeth bestowed a knighthood on him. He was the chairman of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. He had spent 40 distinguished years at ARCO, from which he retired as Chairman and CEO. He helped rebuild the L.A. Library and served on boards of every variety – corporations and non-profits alike. Lod Cook was synonymous with the terms “pillar of the community” and “civic leader.”
Lod had been a big deal but he was retired now, and it surprised me to realize that he wanted to talk about building a football stadium and bringing an NFL team to L.A. As we chatted, though, it became clear that while this man was retired from his job, he still had a fire inside, a sense of civic duty. Lod Cook’s passion and drive were as strong as a man half his age, and with such a wealth of experience and energy sitting across from me, what else could I do? I hired him. We became partners, and together we built a company that today controls nearly 30 percent of the internet traffic in the world, an industry that didn’t even exist 15 years ago.
I’m no genius. I simply made an observation and acted on it. Men and women like Lod are the unsung heroes of America’s business community: top corporate executives, professionals, investors and public officials, who through no fault of their own have lost their platforms and relevance before they were ready. When seasoned leaders are aged out of the system, we lose a tremendous resource.
People in their 60’s and 70’s have an abundance of experience – as leaders, value creators, navigators – and we need more people with this kind of experience to help us through America’s tough times. Think about it – when you’re on an airplane in the middle of a storm, who do you want flying that plane? You want the most experienced pilot. The people I’m hiring lately aren’t thinking about cash compensation and up-front money; they’re looking for opportunity. They’re looking for an alternative to the story that somebody else wrote for them. No one likes feeling irrelevant, especially when they’ve contributed so much in the past.
Now, for those who want to hang up their Mickey Mantle Number 7 jersey, God bless them. They’ve earned it. But I’ve met plenty who aren’t ready to retire their jerseys. Since the day that Lod Cook and I became a team I’ve embarked on similar journeys with other professionals whose industries had said to them, “Thank you, and good-bye.” Whether from business or public service or numerous other fields, these people have consistently brought intellect, solid judgment and unending passion to the table. With a purpose came performance.
Medical science tells us that retirees who stay active live longer, healthier lives. Allowing talented people the opportunity to stay in the game is good for them, but it’s also good for business and it’s good for our country.
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Speed To Wealth: Clocking how long it takes to hit a billion.
October 7, 2011
In July 1999 Jay Walker set a DiMaggian record by passing $1 billion in net worth (liquid or illiquid assets) within one year of founding Priceline. He broke a mark set a year earlier by Global Crossing’s Gary Winnick. Neither man is on the 400 today. That’s a good reminder for the speedsters of our time, Groupon’s Eric Lefkofsky and the Facebook mafia, to set some cash aside. Jay Walker: 1
Gary Winnick: 1.5
Eric Lefkofsky: 2.5
Jeff Bezos: 4
Mark Zuckerberg: 4
Sean Park: 6.5
Sergey Brin: 8
Larry Page: 8
Bill Gates: 12
Daniel Och: 13
Warren Buffet: 19
Henry Ford: 23
John D. Rockefeller: 25
Ray Dolby: 40 YEARS
Three law students at Pepperdine University received grants for academic excellence and community service from Winnick Family Foundation
LOS ANGELES, CA – June 27, 2011 — Pepperdine University has announced the three students who received Winnick Family Foundation Scholar grants during the 2011 academic year. The three second-year law students are: Gregory Zivna Boger, Catherine Moore, and Jennifer Sirrine.
S. Keith Hinkle, Senior Vice President For Advancement and Public Affairs, said: “We are grateful for the continuing commitment of the Winnick Family Foundation to our University and for its partnership with us in providing financial assistance to the most deserving students in our law school. Financial aid is used to bridge the gap between the cost of education and the resources available through the families of the students.”
Gary Winnick stated: “The School of Law at Pepperdine University is unique in its commitment to a balanced curriculum that emphasizes community service with the challenging academic goals it sets for its students. Gregory Boger is both an entrepreneur and a math tutor; Catherine Moore worked in Israel for a microfinance organization providing loans to women and minority families; Jennifer Sirrine is a published legal scholar. Karen and I are pleased to support such future lawyers who have demonstrated commitment to community.”
About the Winnick Family Foundation
The Winnick Family Foundation encourages project-specific programs but also selectively supports capital campaigns and unrestricted gifts to grantee organizations. There is a preference for projects in Los Angeles and New York – or for those having an international component.
Foundation naming grants include:
- Winnick Family Clinical Research Institute at Cedars Sinai Hospital
- Winnick House at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Arnold S. Winnick Student Center at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Winnick International Conference Center at the Simon Wiesenthal Center / Jerusalem
- Winnick Children’s Zoo in Los Angeles
- Winnick Faculty Scholar at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
- Winnick Hall at the Skirball Cultural Center
- Arnold & Blanche Winnick Popular Library and Karen Winnick Children’s Gallery at the Los Angeles Central Library
- Winnick Hillel House at Syracuse University
- Winnick Board Room at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City
- Winnick Winners Mentoring Program for the Los Angeles Unified School District
- Winnick Fellows at UCLA School of Medicine
- Winnick Gallery at Yeshiva University Museum, Center for Jewish HistoryKaren and Gary Winnick and the Foundation have endowed university and high school literacy and scholarship programs at Brown University, at Mrs. Winnick’s alma mater Syracuse University, and at Gary Winnick’s alma mater, Long Island University.
They have also funded the transformation of the on-campus C.W. Post mansion administrative center – renamed Winnick House – as well as the main cafeteria which is now named in honor of Mr. Winnick’s late father.
In California, the Foundation has supported educational programs at the California Science Center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, KOREH L.A., the Los Angeles Zoo, L.A.’s Best Afterschool Program, the Wonder of Reading, the Fulfillment Fund and Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Center.
Among the many other Foundation grantees are the Special Olympics, The Center for Jewish History, Children’s Scholarship Fund, Partnership for Better Schools, Teach for America, The Gettysburg Foundation, The National Parks Foundation, Best Friends Animal Society, The Los Angeles Police Foundation, Shoah Foundation, and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University.
The Foundation also supports charities operating outside the United States, including the International Medical Corps, Flora and Fauna, World Wildlife Fund, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the Israel Museum, the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Zoo, Heifer International and the Bloomfield Science Museum at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. For more information on the Foundation and its work, visit http://www.winnickfamilyfoundation.com on the Web.
Gary Winnick and Karen Winnick – Winnick Family Foundation Renews Grant to Syracuse University Literacy Corps
June 21, 2011
Karen Winnick gives back to her alma mater by supporting Literary Corps program at Syracuse University
Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) June 21, 2011 – The Winnick Family Foundation has made a continuing grant to the Literacy Corps of Syracuse University. Under the Literacy Corps program, elementary students in the Syracuse City School District are tutored by university students to expand and deepen their reading skills. Tutors are compensated through Federal Work-Study funds.
Pamela Kirwin Heintz, founder and director of the Literacy Corps Program, said: “It is gratifying to see literacy advocate Karen Winnick, who graduated from Syracuse University in 1968, participate in and support this vital program. More than 200 of Syracuse University students have participated in this program since its inception in 1997. Literacy Corps also participates in the First Book program in Syracuse and has distributed more than 30,000 First Book free volumes to children across the Syracuse Community.”
Karen Winnick, chairman of the Winnick Family Foundation, said: “Syracuse University’s Literacy Corps is a transformative program for the children of the communities surrounding the campus. The SU tutors often deliver the first books these deserving youngsters have ever owned.”
The grants provided by the Winnick Family Foundation have funded more than 20,000 hours of literacy programming for children in the Syracuse urban area. Tutors working with these children develop fundamental teaching and story-telling skills that will enrich the rest of their lives.
About the Winnick Family Foundation
The Winnick Family Foundation encourages project-specific programs but also selectively supports capital campaigns and unrestricted gifts to grantee organizations. There is a preference for projects in Los Angeles and New York – or for those having an international component.
Foundation naming grants include:
- Winnick Family Clinical Research Institute at Cedars Sinai Hospital
- Winnick House at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Arnold S. Winnick Student Center at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Winnick International Conference Center at the Simon Wiesenthal Center / Jerusalem
- Winnick Children’s Zoo in Los Angeles
- Winnick Faculty Scholar at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
- Winnick Hall at the Skirball Cultural Center
- Arnold & Blanche Winnick Popular Library and Karen Winnick Children’s Gallery at the Los Angeles Central Library
- Winnick Hillel House at Syracuse University
- Winnick Board Room at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City
- Winnick Winners Mentoring Program for the Los Angeles Unified School District
- Winnick Fellows at UCLA School of Medicine
- Winnick Gallery at Yeshiva University Museum, Center for Jewish History
Karen and Gary Winnick and the Foundation have endowed university and high school literacy and scholarship programs at Brown University, at Mrs. Winnick’s alma mater Syracuse University, and at Gary Winnick’s alma mater, Long Island University.
They have also funded the transformation of the on-campus C.W. Post mansion administrative center – renamed Winnick House – as well as the main cafeteria which is now named in honor of Mr. Winnick’s late father.
In California, the Foundation has supported educational programs at the California Science Center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, KOREH L.A., the Los Angeles Zoo, L.A.’s Best Afterschool Program, the Wonder of Reading, the Fulfillment Fund and Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Center.
Among the many other Foundation grantees are the Special Olympics, The Center for Jewish History, Children’s Scholarship Fund, Partnership for Better Schools, Teach for America, The Gettysburg Foundation, The National Parks Foundation, Best Friends Animal Society, The Los Angeles Police Foundation, Shoah Foundation, and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University.
The Foundation also supports charities operating outside the United States, including the International Medical Corps, Flora and Fauna, World Wildlife Fund, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the Israel Museum, the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Zoo, Heifer International and the Bloomfield Science Museum at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. For more information on the Foundation and its work, visit http://www.winnickfamilyfoundation.com on the Web.
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Los Angeles, CA – May 31, 2011 – The Winnick Family Foundation has made its initial grant to the Ready, Set, Read! Project of Los Angeles, which provides low-income parents in Southern California with the tools needed to read to their children. The project trains parents to use dialogic reading techniques, a proven interactive protocol of question-and-response methods that draw a child from initial descriptions of the images in a simple picture book to the accompanying words and script.
Merrily Weiss, Executive Director and Founder of the project, said: “We are grateful to welcome Karen and Gary Winnick with the Winnick Family Foundation to our growing family of contributors who fund our work in Los Angeles. The financial help we receive has a profound impact on these families and sets high expectations in each family early on for their child’s continuing academic success.”
Ready, Set, Read! project leaders first visit each preschool to conduct one-hour read-aloud workshops with parents, conducted in English and in Spanish. At the end of the session, a new children’s book is given to each parent. Since the program’s founding a decade ago, over 21,000 parents have been trained at workshops held at more than 170 school sites across Southern California.
Karen Winnick, Chair of the Winnick Family Foundation, stated: “We are delighted to support Ready, Set, Read! and the important work they do. In addition to donating libraries to preschools with few resources, they teach parents to work effectively with their children to improve reading skills. In this way, parents are enabled to stay actively involved in their children’s education.”
About the Winnick Family Foundation
The Winnick Family Foundation encourages project-specific programs but also selectively supports capital campaigns and unrestricted gifts to grantee organizations. There is a preference for projects in Los Angeles and New York – or for those having an international component.
Foundation naming grants include:
- Winnick Family Clinical Research Institute at Cedars Sinai Hospital
- Winnick House at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Arnold S. Winnick Student Center at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Winnick International Conference Center at the Simon Wiesenthal Center / Jerusalem
- Winnick Children’s Zoo in Los Angeles
- Winnick Faculty Scholar at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
- Winnick Hall at the Skirball Cultural Center
- Arnold & Blanche Winnick Popular Library and Karen Winnick Children’s Gallery at the Los Angeles Central Library
- Winnick Hillel House at Syracuse University
- Winnick Board Room at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City
- Winnick Winners Mentoring Program for the Los Angeles Unified School District
- Winnick Fellows at UCLA School of Medicine
- Winnick Gallery at Yeshiva University Museum, Center for Jewish History
Karen and Gary Winnick and the Foundation have endowed university and high school literacy and scholarship programs at Brown University, at Mrs. Winnick’s alma mater Syracuse University, and at Gary Winnick’s alma mater, Long Island University.
They have also funded the transformation of the on-campus C.W. Post mansion administrative center – renamed Winnick House – as well as the main cafeteria which is now named in honor of Mr. Winnick’s late father.
In California, the Foundation has supported educational programs at the California Science Center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, KOREH L.A., the Los Angeles Zoo, L.A.’s Best Afterschool Program, the Wonder of Reading, the Fulfillment Fund and Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Center.
Among the many other Foundation grantees are the Special Olympics, The Center for Jewish History, Children’s Scholarship Fund, Partnership for Better Schools, Teach for America, The Gettysburg Foundation, The National Parks Foundation, Best Friends Animal Society, The Los Angeles Police Foundation, Shoah Foundation, and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University.
The Foundation also supports charities operating outside the United States, including the International Medical Corps, Flora and Fauna, World Wildlife Fund, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the Israel Museum, the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Zoo, Heifer International and the Bloomfield Science Museum at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. For more information on the Foundation and its work, visit http://www.winnickfamilyfoundation.com on the Web.
http://www.pacificcap.com/about.html
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A Contender Elbows In
March 28, 2011
A FEW weeks ago, Craig Susser, the former manager of the legendary Hollywood restaurant Dan Tana’s, interrupted a morning of paperwork to take a call from one of its regulars, the three-time Stanley Cup champion Junior Langlois.
…
One might also expect Dan Tana, who is 75, to be upset that his ex-employee — in another ritual of the restaurant business — rallied investors for his new place, including the billionaire Gary Winnick and the producer Jerry Weintraub, from within Dan Tana’s ranks. Mr. Susser, 45, said he’d been led to believe he was the heir apparent to Mr. Tana, and was taken aback when Mr. Tana sold his place to a friend, Sonja Perencevic, in 2009.
(Read more via The New York Times.)
The Hottest New Restaurant in LA. Here’s Why
March 28, 2011
In my sixty years of observing the restaurant scene in Los Angeles, I have never before seen a new restaurant open its doors right on the heels of a favorable full-page article in the New York Times about its owner (and, incidentally, without once mentioning its food!) The story, headlined “In L.A., a Restaurant Contender Elbows In,” details how Craig Susser, the long-time manager of a legendary Italian celebrity joint in West Hollywood, Dan Tana’s, recently left there after the 75-year-old owner sold it (supposedly for $6 million!) to someone else (a Croatian countryman of his).
…
One of my long-time readers, billionaire Gary Winnick, emailed me that “Craig is a very talented guy, and will succeed because he understands the marketplace and, most importantly, his customers. That’s why they keep coming back.” Gary invested in the restaurant, so I don’t know if his judgment is impartial, but he is a very hip guy so I kind of trust his acumen. He also alerted me to several dishes which I tried when my ex took me there for my birthday.
(Read more via The Huffington Post.)
Winnick Gallery in New York City Features Rare Treasures Illuminating Jewish History
February 24, 2011
Center for Jewish History is now the largest repository of Jewish history and experience outside of the State of Israel, preserving, protecting and presenting more than 500,000 books and 100 million documents.
New York, NY (PRWEB) February 24, 2011
Winnick Hall, the principal art gallery for Yeshiva University Museum which is located at Manhattan’s Center for Jewish History, is now providing a rare look at selected Jewish history treasures, gathered from collections of the American Jewish Historical Society, the American Sephardi Federation, the Leo Baeck Institute, Yeshiva University Museum, and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
The exhibit, entitled “Zero to Ten,” continues through May 29 and honors the tenth anniversary of the Center for Jewish History. The Center is now the largest repository of Jewish history and experience outside of the State of Israel, preserving, protecting and presenting more than 500,000 books and 100 million documents and including pieces of art, textiles, ritual objects, as well as music, films and photographs.
Gary Winnick said: “My family and I are delighted to provide a venue for this extraordinary exhibition. The items on exhibit now are just a small part of the Center’s vast collection, but sufficient to illuminate and celebrate the rich history of Judaism to the diverse and international audiences that pass through the Center.”
The treasures on display include:
- A Torah scroll belonging to the Baal Shem Tov (1700-1760), founder of Hassidism. This Torah features lines written in his own hand.
- “Dutch Masters in the Rose Room “ by Larry Rivers (1997) (born Yitzroch Loiza Grossberg). This is a playful oil and canvas work based on a conflation of the iconic Dutch Masters cigar box and a Rembrandt group portrait, among other popular and art historical motifs.
- “The Trial of the Jews of Trent,” 1478-1479, ink, gouache and gold on paper. Written for the first Duke of Würtemberg, Eberhardt I, and bearing his arms, this is the only known German copy of the records of the Trials of the Jews of Trent, falsely accused of the ritual murder of a young Christian boy named Simon in 1475.
The “Zero to Ten” exhibit is curated by the Yeshiva University Museum and organized by the Center for Jewish History. Principal funding for the exhibit was provided by The David Berg Foundation, with additional support from the Kumble Cultural Fund, the Selz Family Cultural Fund and the Slovin Foundation. The Winnick Hall gallery was established with a grant from the Winnick Family Foundation.
About the Winnick Family Foundation
The Winnick Family Foundation encourages project-specific programs but also selectively supports capital campaigns and unrestricted gifts to grantee organizations. There is a preference for projects in Los Angeles and New York – or for those having an international component.
Foundation naming grants include:
- Winnick Family Clinical Research Institute at Cedars Sinai Hospital
- Winnick House at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Arnold S. Winnick Student Center at the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University
- Winnick International Conference Center at the Simon Wiesenthal Center / Jerusalem
- Winnick Children’s Zoo in Los Angeles
- Winnick Faculty Scholar at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
- Winnick Hall at the Skirball Cultural Center
- Arnold & Blanche Winnick Popular Library and Karen Winnick Children’s Gallery at the Los Angeles Central Library
- Winnick Hillel House at Syracuse University
- Winnick Board Room at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City
- Winnick Winners Mentoring Program for the Los Angeles Unified School District
- Winnick Fellows at UCLA School of Medicine
- Winnick Gallery at Yeshiva University Museum, Center for Jewish History
Karen and Gary Winnick and the Foundation have endowed university and high school literacy and scholarship programs at Brown University, at Mrs. Winnick’s alma mater Syracuse University, and at Gary Winnick’s alma mater, Long Island University.
They have also funded the transformation of the on-campus C.W. Post mansion administrative center – renamed Winnick House – as well as the main cafeteria which is now named in honor of Mr. Winnick’s late father.
In California, the Foundation has supported educational programs at the California Science Center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, KOREH L.A., the Los Angeles Zoo, L.A.’s Best Afterschool Program, the Wonder of Reading, the Fulfillment Fund and Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Center.
Among the many other Foundation grantees are the Special Olympics, The Center for Jewish History, Children’s Scholarship Fund, Partnership for Better Schools, Teach for America, The Gettysburg Foundation, The National Parks Foundation, Best Friends Animal Society, The Los Angeles Police Foundation, Shoah Foundation, and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University.
The Foundation also supports charities operating outside the United States, including the International Medical Corps, Flora and Fauna, World Wildlife Fund, the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the Israel Museum, the Israel Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Zoo, Heifer International and the Bloomfield Science Museum at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. For more information on the Foundation and its work, visit http://www.winnickfamilyfoundation.com on the Web.
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