Walter H. Annenberg

Before Bill Gates, the world’s most generous philanthropist had been Walter H. Annenberg. At $1.4 billion, the value of his foundation had been unheard of among philanthropic heavyweights in the 1990s.

Mr. Annenberg edited the Philadelphia Inquirer, which his family owned. He salvaged his family’s bankrupt publications firm, Triangle, with astounding success. Through this company, he published Seventeen magazine in 1942, then acquired several American radio and television stations in the 50s. In 1953, he made a fortune with TV Guide, the weekly publication with the world’s largest circulation.

Walter Annenberg philanthropic efforts have amounted to $3.7 billion in cash.

• The Annenberg Foundation has spent over $2.8 billion for the endowment of over 5,000 grants.
• In 1993, Walter Annenberg donated $500 million to his prep school, Peddie, Harvard University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Pennsylvania. The same year, he launched the Annenberg Challenge, a foundation for America’s public education.
• Walter Annenberg’s donation to the United Negro College Fund, totaling $50 million, is the highest ever given to black colleges. He also donated a total of $228 million to the University of Southern California, which led to the creation of the Annenberg School for Communication.
• The Corporation for Public Broadcasting received $150 million from Walter Annenberg. He also gave another $60 million to the same broadcasting outfit to help K-12 pupils in science and math.
• An avid supporter of the arts, Walter Annenberg gave $15 million to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. He also donated his collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist artworks, then valued at $1 billion, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1991.
• Walter H. Annenberg philanthropic activities extended to the United Kingdom. He donated money to The National Gallery and the British Museum, as well as sponsored a teaching post at Eton.

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