Wallis Annenberg | |
|---|---|
 Annenberg in 1981 | |
| Born | Wallis Huberta Annenberg (1939-07-15)July 15, 1939 (age 85) Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Pine Manor College |
| Occupation(s) | Philanthropist President and Chairman of The Annenberg Foundation |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4, includingLauren Bon |
| Parent(s) | Walter Annenberg Veronica Dunkelman |
| Relatives | Moses Annenberg (grandfather) Janet Annenberg Hooker (aunt) Enid Haupt (aunt) Leonore Annenberg (stepmother) |
Wallis Huberta Annenberg (born July 15, 1939) is an American philanthropist and heiress. Annenberg serves as president and chairwoman of the Board of TheAnnenberg Foundation, a multibillion-dollar philanthropic organization in the United States.[1]
Wallis Annenberg was born in 1939 inPhiladelphia,[2] into aJewish family, the daughter of publishing magnateWalter Hubert Annenberg, and his first wife, Bernice Veronica Dunkelman, known as Ronny, a socialite fromToronto, Canada. Her grandfatherMoses Annenberg (1877–1942), owner ofThe Philadelphia Inquirer,[3] emigrated from Germany toChicago in 1900. Her father owned a 15-acre (61,000 m2) estate calledInwood, where Wallis was raised.[2]
When she was 10 years old, her parents divorced and her mother moved toWashington, D.C., to marry Ben Ourisman, aChevrolet car dealer.[2] Meanwhile, her father remarried in the year after the divorce toLeonore "Lee" Cohn, the niece ofColumbia Pictures PresidentHarry Cohn.[4]
Wallis Annenberg graduated in 1959 fromPine Manor College, when it was ajunior college.[5][6]
She had a brother, Roger, who committed suicide at a psychiatric institution inBucks County, Pennsylvania, at the age of 22 in 1962, while on leave fromHarvard University for treatment ofschizophrenia.[3][7][8] She named one of her sons after her brother.[2][9]
On a trip toVenice, in 1959, to celebrate completion of junior college, Annenberg met Seth Weingarten, who had just completed his undergraduate education atPrinceton University and was looking forward toYale Medical School. They quickly fell in love and, after only one year of studies at Columbia, Annenberg dropped out of school and married Weingarten at Inwood in 1960.[2] They moved around the country, following her husband's career.[2]
They had four children:Lauren, born inNew Haven, Connecticut in 1961, Roger, who was named after Wallis's deceased brother, Gregory, born in New York City during Weingarten's residency atNew York Hospital, and Charles, born inRoswell, New Mexico where Weingarten was serving as a medical officer atWalker Air Force Base.[2] At her insistence, Weingarten accepted a position at UCLA, at the hospital now known asRonald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and they established a permanent home in California.[10]
In 1975, she divorced Weingarten. In 1978, he won the custody of the children. In 1979, he offered Wallis full custody.[10]
When Wallis started to work forTriangle Publications, which includedTV Guide andSeventeen magazine, as well as radio and TV stations nationwide, her father was its chairman of the board.[11] She stayed for three years after its sale toRupert Murdoch in 1988.[2]
She appeared onThe Joan Rivers Show on the new Fox television network in 1986, alongside actressesLucille Ball andMichele Lee.
After she died in March 2009, Leonore Annenberg left the leadership of the Annenberg Foundation to Wallis and three of her children: Lauren, Gregory and Charles.[12] Wallis Annenberg today carries on her father's legacy as a public benefactor. As chairman and president of theAnnenberg Foundation,[13] she donates the family name and fortune to philanthropic and charitable projects, largely to the benefit ofLos Angeles County.
She is on theboard of trustees at theLos Angeles County Museum of Art, and at theMuseum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. She is a supporter of theHarlem Children's Zone, the Ojai Foundation's "Council project" forinner-city kids, and theOcean Alliance.[2] She serves on the board of trustees at theUniversity of Southern California,[14] home of theUSC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. In 2014, the Wallis Annenberg Hall at USC was opened at part of the Annenberg School. In 2017, she was honored with the USC University Medallion for her philanthropy and leadership.[13]
She is involved with the Wallis Annenberg Concourse at theRonald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and theWallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, which held its opening gala in October 2013.[15]
She was inspired by and provided funding to build theUniversally-Accessible Treehouse inTorrance, California.[16] "It is thrilling to be able to make it possible for people of all ages and physical abilities to experience the world from a treehouse," said Wallis Annenberg. "There's a sense of vision, fun and pure escape that only such a structure can provide."[16]
Annenberg serves on the board of directors for the New York-based chapter of the foundation ofPrincess Charlene of Monaco.[17]
Her childrenLauren Bon, Gregory Weingarten and Charles Weingarten serve on the board of directors of theAnnenberg Foundation. Her son Roger Weingarten, a resident of Devereux[18] inSanta Barbara, California, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 15, like his namesake,[19][20] is not on the board.[20][21][22]Despite her father leaving the majority of his multibillion-dollar fortune to the Annenberg Foundation, it is estimated that Annenberg has a personal fortune in excess of five hundred million dollars.
Philanthropic projects include Wallis Annenberg PetSpace, Wallis Annenberg GenSpace, Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Annenberg Space for Photography, Annenberg Community Beach House and theWallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing.