Joseph Cullman | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Frederick Cullman III April 9, 1912 |
| Died | April 30, 2004 (age 92) |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | CEO ofPhilip Morris Company |
| Spouse(s) | Susan Lehman (divorced) Joan Paley Straus |
| Children | Dorothy Cullman Treisman (with Lehman) |
| Parent(s) | Francis Nathan Wolff Cullman Joseph F. Cullman Jr. |
| Relatives | Dorothy Cullman (sister-in-law) Edgar M. Cullman (brother) |
Joseph Frederick Cullman III (April 9, 1912 – April 30, 2004) was an American businessman who was CEO ofPhilip Morris from 1957 to 1978.
Cullman was born to aJewish family on April 9, 1912, inNew York City, the son of Frances Nathan Wolff and Joseph F. Cullman Jr.[1][2] He had two brothersEdgar M. Cullman andLewis B. Cullman (married toDorothy Freedman Cullman).[3] He was educated at theCollegiate School (New York City) and theHotchkiss School.[1][4]
In 1929, Cullman's father purchased the Webster Tobacco Company after the 1929 stock market collapse where the younger Cullman worked during the summers while attendingYale University from which he graduated in 1935.[1]
After college Cullman worked as a clerk in a local tobacco store and then worked at the Uppmann Cigar factory in Cuba.[1] In 1941, his father and uncle,Howard S. Cullman, founded an investment company, Cullman Brothers Incorporated, to purchaseBenson & Hedges.[1] Cullman served during World War II and after the war, he went to work for Benson & Hedges as executive vice president until 1953.[1] In 1954, Cullman brothers exchanged its interest in Benson & Hedges for $22.4 million inPhilip Morris stock.[1] Cullman was appointed a vice president at Philip Morris in 1954; executive vice president in 1955; president and CEO in 1957; and chairman of the board and CEO in 1967,[1] a position he held until 1978.[5]
During his tenure as CEO, the Philip Morris brandMarlboro became the most popular brand of cigarette in theUnited States.[6] Described as "the cigarette industry's chief defender against the antitobacco movement",[5] he oversaw the creation of the successfulMarlboro Man campaign from the 1950s onwards which has since become known as an icon of AmericanTV advertising. In a now notorious 1971 television interview on the American current affairs programFace the Nation, in response to a recently published study on the large numbers of undersized babies born to pregnant female smokers he declared "I concluded from that report that it's true that babies born from women who smoke are smaller, but they are just as healthy as the babies born to women who do not smoke. Some women would prefer having smaller babies."[7]
In 1935, he married Susan Lehman, daughter ofHarold M. Lehman and member of theLehman family; they had one daughter,[1] Dorothy Cullman Treisman, before divorcing in 1974.[8] He then marriedJoan Paley Straus who had two children from a previous marriage, Tracy Straus and Barnard S. Straus Jr.[8][9] They divorced soon after marrying but moved back in together after several years and remarried in 1988.[10]
Away from the tobacco industry he had an interest in tennis. His company, Philip Morris, at the request ofGladys Heldman, sponsored the firstVirginia Slims Women's Tennis Tour starting in 1970. He served as chairman of theUS Open atForest Hills in 1969 and 1970 and as both president and chairman of theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame from 1982 to 1988, into which he was inducted in 1990.[11]
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