Posted on 10/07/2011 9:17:17 PM PDT by MadelineZapeezda
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Milan "Mike" Puskar, co-founder of the third-largest generic pharmaceuticals company in the world and longtime donor to West Virginia University, died Friday at age 77.
Puskar died at 8:30 p.m. in Morgantown after a battle with cancer, said Steve Lorenze, his business partner.
In 1961, Puskar co-founded Mylan Laboratories Inc. in Morgantown. The company began as a distributor, buying finished goods and reselling them to pharmacies and physicians. In 1966, it received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to manufacture its first medicine, Penicillin G.
Mylan now is a Fortune 500 company with headquarters in Canonsburg, Pa. By 2001, it had earned more than $1 billion.
When Puskar stepped down as chairman of the company in 2009, Mylan was worth more than $3.5 billion, according to its website.
Puskar was a longtime donor to WVU and a Mountaineer athletics fan. The WVU football stadium and facilities buildings are named in his honor.
His largest gift was a $20 million contribution to the WVU Foundation's Building Greatness campaign in 2003. He has the distinction of making the largest one-time cash gift in the foundation's history, according to a news release from the university.
(Excerpt) Read more at wvgazette.com ...
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