''I don't think Ralph knows any more about Brian's personal life than he knows about the others. 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. That's his legacy: not leaving his children wanting. Your entry has exceeded the maximum character limit. "The trick," Mr. Roberts said in the biography, "is to make everyone feel involved.". Suzanne Roberts. Bob McGovern Penn honored him in 2005 with the Doctor of Laws honoris causa. Send a note, share a story or upload a photo. After graduating from Parkrose High School in 1968, Doug attended Willamette University, then he graduated with a BA and Masters in Public . The deal stirred up widespread opposition from factions who feared that the resulting cable industry giant would stifle competition and hurt consumers. "Our city has lost a wonderful champion with his passing.". He was committed to the fight against cancer, and along with his wife and family, helped establish the Roberts Proton Therapy Center. 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. He was able to keep it alive as the company grew. Comcast, with $68.8 billion in revenue and 139,000 employees, is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet, and telephone provider to homes. ''Ralph and Julian have been intimately involved, but Ralph doesn't sit there until 4 A.M. in the lawyers' offices anymore. Let others know about your loved one's death. Echovita offers a solidarity program that gives back the funds generated to families. Cancel any time, no strings attached. "It has been a dream come true for him - and for me," Brian Roberts told his father's biographer. He was 95. But they talk all the time. If he hadn't, his father confesses, ''I probably would have sold the company. ''Ralph is tough,'' he says ruefully. "I couldn't have done that if I didn't have any money. The appeal was the Roberts team, the challenge, and the firm's culture. [4] He was awarded honorary degrees from both Holy Family College and the University of Pennsylvania, where he received their Joseph P. Wharton Award. If you have a small private business, and the old man has stashed away something under the floor, then it's very different.''. Comcast, a name Roberts coined from the words communications and broadcasting,was incorporated in 1969. Mr. Roberts, who had been in declining health, died of natural causes. Only his fourth child, Brian, is at Comcast, the. We are deeply saddened to announce that Ralph J. Roberts, husband, father and grandfather, died of natural causes Thursday, June 18 in Philadelphia, PA. When not on the basketball court, Douglas loved playing cards, spending time with his family, and helping those less fortunate. He wants the other person to always feel good, whatever the exchange is. Enter Committed to the fight against cancer, he and his family helped establish the Roberts Proton Therapy Center at Penn Medicine in 2006. Mr. Immelt was aware that many deals dont get concluded, the elder Mr. Roberts was quoted as saying in The Incredible Dream, a 2012 biography by William Novak, and he wanted some reassurance from the father of the groom that we wouldnt let this opportunity slip through our fingers.. [13][14], Roberts made an appearance on TLC's reality series Cake Boss, receiving a cake for his 90th birthday. On ski trips, he would patiently lace up five pairs of ski boots. 2023 SCI SHARED RESOURCES, LLC. Douglas P. Roberts LEESBURG, FL Douglas P. Roberts, 54, of Leesburg, FL, passed away Aug, 18, 2014. Receive a notification when services are updated. The Roberts Family Remembers Ralph J. Roberts. He helped his wife, an actress, practice her lines and attended every performance no matter how many days the show ran. Would you like to offer Douglas A. Robertss loved ones a condolence message? Overnight, it went from 18th to fifth among cable firms in the United States, with two million customers. JUST as important, family-business experts say the apparent harmony within the Roberts family bodes well for the chances of a smooth transition. In 1963, the year he founded the company, he created Comcast class B shares, of which there are 8.8 million, each with 15 votes. 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. Less than $5 per month Loving father of Dennis Garland, D.J. ''I was probably the one to pull the curtain,'' he said. 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. '', Brian Roberts, on the other hand, seems to relish his public role. Douglas McArthur ROBERTS, age 79, of Rancho Cucamonga, California passed away on Monday, May 16, 2022. There was another side to Mr. Roberts - as a mentor to those other than his son. 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. '', Or an arrogant one. He moved his family to New Rochelle, N.Y., when Ralph was 5. 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. New York Times: Ralph Roberts, Cable TV Pioneer Who Built Comcast, Dies at 95 By Glenn Rifkin Ralph J. Roberts, who at the dawn of the cable television industry bought a small cable service in Tupelo, Miss., and built it into Comcast, today the largest cable television company in the nation, died Thursday night in Philadelphia. mother. The elder Mr. Roberts has made sure that each of Brian's siblings will retain an economic stake in Comcast equal their brother's. The elder Roberts was also civic-minded. "When?" DOUGLAS ROBERTS OBITUARY Douglas J. Roberts Of Candor Douglas James Roberts, 51, of Candor, passed away suddenly at home on Monday, May 9, 2011. Mr. Roberts would help with homework and listen to each of his five children. 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. Anyone can read what you share. The potential for conflict is obvious. And Peter Barton, the former president of Liberty Media, recalled that Brian Roberts played the key role in a complicated deal with Liberty involving the purchase of Time Warner's stake in E Entertainment, a cable-service company, for $321 million. When the club proved to be poorly made, however the shaft bent like a pretzel, Mr. Roberts said he quickly exited the business. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Mr. Roberts later took jobs with the Muzak Corporation and the Pioneer Suspender Company, which sold mens belts and cologne. And Ed Snider, Comcast Spectacor chairman, said Mr. Roberts was "a great partner and an even greater friend. But as Brian Roberts worked his way up the ladder, the halcyon 1980's came to an end. I never felt that Comcast was a sixth child," she said. This has a pretty good chance of working. Mr. Roberts has been married to his wife, Suzanne, for 54 years. This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. "His legacy is that he left a big, vibrant company, that is led by his son, that will live on for many, many years," Comcast executive Steve Burke said. He was 95. 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. Over the last five years, it has brought in a younger team of senior executives to work with Brian, including the executive vice president, Larry Smith, 49; the senior treasurer, John Alchin, 49, and the president of the cable division, Tom Baxter, 50. Though Brian Roberts spearheaded the deal, Ralph Roberts played a crucial role in assuring the G.E. The family will host a private service for the family, the company announced. He was. This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. Actually, he added, "I've had a lot of bad ideas, but he would never say that. His main goal at the time was to make a lot of money. Comcast, the company that the venture became (with Mr. Aaron and Mr. Brodsky as its first two employees), has 27.2 million subscribers and produced $68.8 billion in revenue in 2014, the company said. Genealogy for Douglas Roberts (1960 - 2011) family tree on Geni, with over 230 million profiles of ancestors and living relatives. Comcast - the name borrowed from communications and broadcasting - was incorporated in 1969 and began its legendary climb. What is more common is that this kind of agreement does not happen. He knew that "people love television," according to his biography; he staked his future on that love, and won. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. 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. While building Comcast, he built an economic engine for the city of Philadelphia as well.". Family-business experts say the family is something of an anomaly in devising a smooth transfer between generations. Funeral Home website by. And experts say the odds of a successful transition are greater at Comcast than at most family businesses. He never pressured any of them to join the family company -- and none besides Brian showed any interest in doing so. He rose to president and chief executive at Pioneer and eventually bought the company. (66 years old). In later years, he did so with his son Brian L. Roberts, to whom he turned over the companys presidency in 1990 when Brian was 30 years old. "As a person, his DNA is all over our company. "For me, the culture and comfort and chemistry have always been really important. Brian Roberts said his parents tried to make life stimulating and eye-opening for their children. "You could tell Ralph was crazy about Brian, and Brian was crazy about him. We would like to offer our sincere support to anyone coping with grief. It may take up to 1 hour for your comment to appear on the website. Already in his 40s, he was approached by a Philadelphia acquaintance named Dan Aaron, who alerted him to a 1,200-subscriber cable television system for sale in Tupelo. In 1994, for example, Ralph Roberts scuttled a bid by Barry Diller, then the chairman of QVC, the home-shopping cable channel, to acquire CBS. IN THE CARE OF. . DOUGLAS ROBERTS OBITUARY. 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. It also locked up broadcast rights to the Phillies. And I always answer with a straight face, 'Of course I did,' " Mr. Roberts said in An Incredible Dream, his authorized biography, written by William Novak. BigDaddy, as he was known to his friends and family, had a remarkable passion and talent for athletics. Family and friends are welcome to leave their condolences on this memorial page and share them with the family. "Ralph served as a longtime member of the Penn Medicine board, and actively supported athletics, undergraduate financial aid, and his class." The couple created the Suzanne Roberts Theatre at 480 S. Broad St. in her honor. Ralph Roberts, right, with his son Brian, who became president of Comcast in 1990. "His vision was always to create a little IBM," Rudnay said. In 1963, he and his partners, Daniel Aaron and Julian A. Brodsky, paid $500,000 for a 1,200-subscriber cable TV operator in Tupelo, Mississippi, called American Cable Systems. Growing up with five kids competing for attention, it's not easy, but he put his family first. He never told me anything I wanted to do at Comcast was a bad idea, and after more than 30 years, youd think Ive had a lot of bad ideas.. A Funeral Service will begin at Noon at . He was 95. hairman emeritus of the companys board of directors, created a. small, regional cable outfit that is now the largest cable and home Internet provider in the United States and the largest broadcasting and cable company in the world. The elder Mr. Roberts kept the titles of chairman and chief executive. "Ralph was always 'Ralph' to his rank-and-file employees, and a great listener who always checked his ego at the door. For Brodsky that was giving up the four or five packs of unfiltered Pall Mall cigarettes he used to smoke. It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Douglas A. Roberts of Mount Carmel, Illinois, born in Tampa, Florida, who passed away on May 2, 2021, at the age of 66, leaving to mourn family and friends. ''I would see Ralph about once a year. In 2011, fulfilling the Robertses long-held interest in NBC, Comcast acquired a majority stake in NBCUniversal from General Electric for $6.5 billion; in doing so, it became one of the industrys leading content producers. 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. In the meantime, he and his wife had five children. He managed to get a photograph of Bob Hope holding the club and asked him to endorse it, to help out a veteran, Mr. Roberts recalled, but there was never any formal agreement. Like many other cable companies, Comcast peaked in late 1993, at $28.17 a share. Ralph Joel Roberts was born on March 13, 1920, in New York City, and was an entrepreneur from an early age. The fundamental fact is that people love television, he said, and if you can provide them with more television, they love it even more.. He will always be remembered for his generosity, integrity, honesty, kindness and respect for everyone around him. Sign up for service and obituary updates. There are too many other combatants, and it becomes another deal. With over 1,900 locations, Dignity Memorial providers proudly serve over 375,000 families a year. Our activities are so public. He has five children, aged 36 to 47. "These guys go out there and kill each other!". "I think maybe Ralph Roberts is the most successful businessman in the last 50 years that most people haven't heard of. [2][3] Roberts graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and served a four-year tour on duty in the United States Navy.[4]. Stone Funeral Home. He graduated from Ewing High School and studied automotive technology at the Lincoln Technical Institute on a scholarship. Another son, Douglas, died in September 2011. It purchased for $30 billion controlling interest in the entertainment conglomerate's NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks; pay TV channels such as USA, CNBC, Bravo, and Syfy; the Universal movie studio; and Universal Studios theme parks in Florida and California. Mr. Roberts built Comcast through a series of acquisitions of cable systems around the country. Beloved companion of the late Mary McMenemy. Create an obituary. 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. 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. ''We never emphasized that they should make a lot of money, or have the biggest car,'' Mrs. Roberts recalled. 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