Edward Maurice Bronfman, (November 1, 1927 – April 4, 2005) was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
businessman,
philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
, and member of the
Bronfman family
The Bronfman family is a Canadian family, known for its extensive business holdings. It owes its initial fame to Samuel Bronfman (1889–1971), the most influential Canadian Jew of the mid-20th century, who made a fortune in the alcoholic distill ...
.
Born in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, the son of Allan Bronfman and the nephew of
Samuel Bronfman
Samuel Bronfman, (February 27, 1889 – July 10, 1971) was a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. He founded Distillers Corporation Limited, and is a member of the Canadian Bronfman family.
Biography
Samuel Bronfman was born in Otaci, So ...
, founder of
Seagram
The Seagram Company Ltd. (which traded as Seagram's) was a Canadian multinational conglomerate formerly headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. Originally a distiller of Canadian whisky based in Waterloo, Ontario, it was once (in the 1990s) the lar ...
, he attended
Selwyn House School
Selwyn House School (SHS) is an English-language independent K-11 boys' school located in Westmount, Quebec. The school was founded in 1908 by Englishman Captain Algernon Lucas and was named in honour of Selwyn College at the University of Cam ...
,
Bishop's College School
Bishop's College School or BCS is an English-language non-profit independent boarding
prep school in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada for students in Grades 7 to 12.Thomson, Ashley; Lafortune, Sylvie (1999). Handbook of Canadian Boarding Schools. To ...
and
Babson College
Babson College is a private business school in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Established in 1919, its central focus is on entrepreneurship education. It was founded by Roger W. Babson as an all-male business institute, but became coeducational i ...
, where he graduated in 1950 with a degree in business administration. He founded (with his brother,
Peter Bronfman
Peter Frederick Bronfman, OC (October 2, 1929 – December 1, 1996) was a Canadian businessman and entrepreneur, born in Montreal, and member of the Toronto branch of Canada's wealthy Bronfman family. He attended Selwyn House School in Montre ...
)
Edper Investments Edper Investments Ltd. was the primary holding company and investment vehicle for brothers Edward Bronfman and Peter Bronfman between 1959 and 1995. At its peak in the 1980s and early 1990s, Edper was one of the largest corporate conglomerates in C ...
(now called
Brookfield Asset Management
Brookfield Asset Management Inc. is a Canadian multinational company that is one of the world's largest alternative investment management companies, with over US$725 billion of assets under management in 2022. It focuses on direct contr ...
), a
conglomerate company which once had an estimated CAD $100 billion in
assets under management and included several of the largest corporations in Canada. From 1971 to 1978, he and his brother owned the
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
. The team won four Stanley Cups under their ownership, in 1973, 1976, 1977 and 1978.
In 2000 he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the ...
in recognition of his dedication to philanthropy.
He was married twice (once divorced), and had three sons: Paul, David and Brian.
He died from
colon cancer
Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel mo ...
.
References
*
*
Further reading
* Susan Gittins, ''Behind Closed Doors: The Rise and Fall of Canada's Edper Bronfman and Reichman Empires'' (1995)
* Patricia Best and Ann Shortell, ''The Brass Ring: Power, Influence and the Brascan Empire'' (1988)
See also
*
List of Bishop's College School alumni
Bishop's College School, a private secondary school founded in 1836 in the Borough of Lennoxville, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada owns an Old boy network. Former male students are referred to as BCS Old Boys and former King's Hall, Compton & BCS fem ...
1927 births
2005 deaths
Edward Bronfman
Edward Maurice Bronfman, (November 1, 1927 – April 4, 2005) was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and member of the Bronfman family.
Born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Allan Bronfman and the nephew of Samuel Bronfman, founder of Se ...
Businesspeople from Montreal
Canadian sports businesspeople
Deaths from cancer in Ontario
Deaths from colorectal cancer
Bishop's College School alumni
Jewish Canadian philanthropists
Officers of the Order of Canada
Canadian company founders
Canadian real estate businesspeople
Canadian people of Russian-Jewish descent
20th-century philanthropists
{{Canada-business-bio-stub