Lee Bass – Billionaire

Lee Marshall Bass (born 1956) is an American heir, businessman and philanthropist.

Early life

Lee Bass was born in 1956. His father was Perry Richardson Bass, an investor and philanthropist, and his mother, Nancy Lee Bass, was a philanthropist. His great-uncle was oil baron Sid Richardson.

He graduated from Yale University in 1979 and received a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1982.

Career

In 1989, Governor William P. Clements, Jr. appointed him to a six-year term as a commissioner of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. In 1995, Governor George W. Bush named him Chairman and reappointed him for another six years. In 2001, he was named Chairman-Emeritus by Governor Rick Perry. He is the primary steward of the historic El Coyote Longhorn Ranch in Kingsville, Texas.

Philanthropy

He serves on the boards of the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, The Peregrine Fund, and Vanderbilt University. He is a founding director of the International Rhino Foundation, and Chairman Emeritus of the Board of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

In 1991, under the presidency of Benno C. Schmidt, Jr., he donated $20 million to Yale University to start a new program in Western civilization. However, in 1995, under the presidency of Richard C. Levin, the gift was returned and the program canceled. In 1993, he also founded the Lee and Ramona Bass Foundation with his wife. In 2009-2010, the foundation donated $700,000 to the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. A Republican, he has supported George W. Bush, George Allen, Phil Gramm, John McCain, and Kay Bailey Hutchison. He has also donated $159,760 to Rick Perry.

Source:wikipedia