Just trying to put some perspective on this.
-PJ
Sumner M. Redstone is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Viacom. Under his leadership, Viacom has become one of the world's largest entertainment and media companies, and a leader in the production, promotion and distribution of entertainment, news, sports, music and comedy. Viacom's properties include CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon, VH1, BET, Paramount Pictures, Viacom Outdoor, Infinity Broadcasting, UPN, Spike TV, TV Land, CMT: Country Music Television, Comedy Central, Showtime, Blockbuster and Simon & Schuster. National Amusements, Inc., a closely held corporation which operates approximately 1,400 motion picture screens in the United States, the United Kingdom and South America, is the parent company of Viacom.
Mr. Redstone has been Chairman of the Board of Viacom since June 1987, when National Amusements, Inc. acquired a controlling interest in the New York-based company. In January 1996, Mr. Redstone took on additional responsibilities as Chief Executive Officer of Viacom. Mr. Redstone has been Chairman of the Board of National Amusements since 1986, and Chief Executive Officer of National Amusements since July 1967. He was President of National Amusements from July 1967 to December 1999.
Mr. Redstone has played a significant role in the affairs of the entertainment and communications industries. He is a member of the Advisory Council for the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Foundation and is on the Board of Trustees for The Museum of Television and Radio. He also served as Chairman of the Board of the National Association of Theatre Owners, and currently is a member of the Executive Committee of that organization. Before that, he was President of the Theatre Owners of America, which was then the major trade association representing motion picture exhibitors.
Mr. Redstone enjoys and takes pride in teaching college men and women, and has lectured at a variety of universities, including Harvard Law School and Brandeis University. While serving as a Law Clerk in the Court of Appeals, Mr. Redstone taught at the University of San Francisco. In 1982, he joined the faculty of the Boston University School of Law, where he created one of the nation's first courses in entertainment law. In May 1994, Mr. Redstone received an honorary Doctor of Laws from Boston University.
Mr. Redstone also devotes a large portion of his time and energy to civic and community affairs. He is a member of the Board of Overseers of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He served as State Crusade Chairman for the American Cancer Society from 1984 to 1986, and currently serves as Vice President, as well as a member of the Executive Committee, of the Will Rogers Memorial Fund. He is a member of the Corporation of the Massachusetts General Hospital and is on the Board of Overseers of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. He is a member of the Executive Board of the Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston. Mr. Redstone has served as the Chairman of the Jimmy Fund (Children's Cancer Research Foundation), and was a member of the Corporation of the New England Medical Center. He is a former Chairman of the Metropolitan Division of the Combined Jewish Philanthropies.
During the Carter Administration, he was appointed a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee of the Arts for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and in 1984, was appointed a Director of the Kennedy Presidential Library Foundation. He also has served as a judge on the Foundation's select committee to award the annual John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, each year since the Award's inception in 1990.
Mr. Redstone began his career as Law Secretary with the U.S. Court of Appeals, and then served as a Special Assistant to the U.S. Attorney General. Subsequently, he was a partner with the law firm of Ford, Bergson, Adams, Borkland and Redstone in Washington, D.C. In 1954, he joined National Amusements, Inc., which he then organized into the successful company it is today. Based in Dedham, Massachusetts, National Amusements is one of the largest motion picture circuits in the United States.
Mr. Redstone served in the Military Intelligence Division during World War II. While a student at Harvard, he was selected by Japanese history professor Edwin Reischauer (later Ambassador to Japan) to join a special intelligence group whose mission was to break Japan's high-level military and diplomatic codes. In connection with these activities, Mr. Redstone received, among other honors, two commendations from the Military Intelligence Division in recognition of his service, contribution and devotion to duty. He is also a recipient of the Army Commendation Award.
Mr. Redstone's education began at Boston Latin School, where he graduated first in his class. In 1944, after studying for two and one-half years at Harvard College, he was awarded a degree by Harvard University's Special Board of Overseers. In 1947, Mr. Redstone received his LL.B. from the Harvard University School of Law.