Richard Parsons, the former CEO of Time Warner, has died at the age of 76

Dick Parsons, an American businessman who led Time Warner and helped iconic US companies navigate difficult circumstances, has died at the age of 76.

A prominent black business executiveParsons was known for his problem-solving prowess, leading major companies including Time Warner and City Groupthrough periods of suffering. He has also advised US presidents and served on the boards of Estee Lauder, the Museum of Modern Art and other companies. (Time Warner is the former parent company of CNN.)

“Dick Parsons was the most brilliant person I ever met – wise, steady and endlessly insightful,” said Ronald Lauder, one of the heirs to the Estee Lauder cosmetics company who worked with Parsons. “His composition, brilliance and unwavering ability to find solutions were unmatched.”

Parsons’ death was confirmed by both Lauder and in a statement from the financial services firm Lazard, where he had served on the board.

“Dick’s storied career embodied the best traditions of American business leadership,” Lazard said.

With a firm hand, Parsons wielded influence in corporate America during the dot-com bust and the Great Recession.

He was widely credited with the stunning turnaround of Time Warner after a botched $165 billion merger with AOL, the ubiquitous web portal in the early days of the Internet. With Parsons as CEO, Time Warner cut its debt roughly in half while ushering in a new era of sustainable growth.

Then there was Parsons selected to lead Citigroup as president through a complex and much-needed restructuring process after the 2008 financial crisis, which led to the largest banking collapse in US history.

“Dick played both an enormous role in building Time Warner, but he was also one of the greatest problem solvers this industry has ever seen. That’s why many of us looked up to him and sought his wise counsel,” said David Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, who had met Parsons some 30 years ago at NBC. He said Parsons was a “tough and brilliant negotiator, always looking to create something where both sides win”.

A rapid ascent

Richard Dean Parsons was born on April 4, 1948, in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in South Ozone Park in Queens. He was one of five children, and his parents were an electrician and a housewife.

Coming from a middle-class family, Parsons attended public school and graduated after skipping two grades. At 16, he enrolled at the University of Hawaii, where he played basketball and met Laura Ann Bush, whom he married in 1968. He also graduated at the top of his class from Albany Law School in 1971 .

Parsons had a knack for politics and corporate decision-making. He began his career as a lawyer for former New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller. When Rockefeller became US Vice President, Parsons moved to DC as a White House aide in President Gerald Ford’s administration.

He would later be an economic adviser to President Barack Obama and work on former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s transition team.

After moving back to New York, Parsons quickly rose through the ranks at the law firm of Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler, eventually becoming a partner. He moved into the banking industry, leading the Dime Savings Bank of New York as an executive director, then as its CEO – his first experience delivering a successful turnaround to a company.

He stayed true to his passion for basketball, becoming interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers in 2014, while putting his determined leadership skills into action.

“During a time of adversity and uncertainty for the Los Angeles Clippers, Dick stepped in to provide the type of steady and reassuring leadership that has defined his remarkable career in business and public service,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement Thursday .

Parsons didn’t see his race as a key aspect of his success story.

“For many people, race is a defining issue. It’s just not for me,” he told The New York Times in 1997. “It’s… like air. It’s like the height. I have other things to focus on.”

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