Richard Parsons, prominent Black executive who led Time Warner and Citigroup, dies at 76
Richard Parsons, prominent Black executive who led Time Warner and Citigroup, dies at 76
Share:
Richard Parsons, one of corporate America's most prominent Black executives who held top posts at Time Warner and Citigroup, died Thursday. He was 76. Parsons, who died at his Manhattan home, was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2015 and cited “unanticipated complications” from the disease for cutting back on work a few years later.
The financial services company Lazard, where Parsons was a longtime board member, confirmed his death. The NBA, where Parsons was interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers in 2014, was among organizations offering condolences. “Dick Parsons was a brilliant and transformational leader and a giant of the media industry who led with integrity and never shied away from a challenge,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said.
Parsons’ friend Ronald Lauder told The New York Times that the cause of death was cancer. Parsons stepped down Dec. 3 from the boards of Lazard and Lauder's company, Estée Lauder, citing health reasons. He had been on Estée Lauder’s board for 25 years.
Parsons, a Brooklyn native who started college at 16, was named chairman of Citigroup in 2009, one month after leaving Time Warner Inc., where he helped restore the company’s stature following its much-maligned acquisition by internet provider America Online Inc.
