George Matthew Keller (December 3, 1923 – October 17, 2008Martin, Douglas (October 17, 2008)

'' The New York Times''.) was the chairman of

Standard Oil Company of California Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California (shortened to Socal or CalSo), it is headquartered in S ...

("SoCal") in the 1980s, where he oversaw its merger with Gulf Oil to form

Chevron Corporation Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California (shortened to Socal or CalSo), it is headquartered in S ...

in 1984.

Life and career

Keller was born on December 3, 1923, in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. After his mother died while Keller was a youngster, he was raised by an aunt who fostered an interest in science. He developed a strong fascination with

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

after visiting the

DuPont DuPont de Nemours, Inc., commonly shortened to DuPont, is an American multinational chemical company first formed in 1802 by French-American chemist and industrialist Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours. The company played a major role in ...

exhibit at the Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago in 1933. Keller enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and ultimately graduated from the school in 1948. He left the school as a sophomore and enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps, serving as a meteorologist in Labrador. He chose a position at Standard Oil Company of California in San Francisco after graduation. At Standard Oil, Keller's specialty was designing

refineries A refinery is a production facility composed of a group of chemical engineering unit processes and unit operations refining certain materials or converting raw material into products of value. Types of refineries Different types of refineries ar ...

. He rose through the ranks and had assignments that included the first discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia, made in 1938, for which Keller received a replica of the sword of

Mohammed Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monoth ...

as a gift. Keller became chairman of Standard Oil in 1981, succeedin
Harold J. Haynes
as chairman and chief executive officer. As the company's head, Keller fostered an informal management style and a more aggressive approach to risk. In 1984, Keller and SoCal were caught in a bidding war with

T. Boone Pickens Thomas Boone Pickens Jr. (May 22, 1928 – September 11, 2019) was an American business magnate and financier. Pickens chaired the hedge fund BP Capital Management. He was a well-known takeover operator and corporate raider during the 1980 ...

over Gulf Oil. Keller had originally been reluctant to join the wave of mergers spreading through the industry based on his analysis that the firm could acquire new oil reserves at lower cost through exploration and drilling, rather than by purchasing competitors. After a detailed analysis of Gulf Oil's financial records, Keller and his team came up with a price of $79 per share. Keller upped the bid to $80 per share at the last minute, providing the margin that won Gulf in an acquisition valued at $13.3 billion. Though the deal added significantly to the firm's debt load, it was able to double the combined firm's oil reserves, with most of the cost covered by the sale of assets that had been part of Gulf Oil. In August 1988, Chevron named

Kenneth T. Derr Kenneth T. Derr is a member of the board of directors of the Halliburton Company. He is a retired chairman of the board, Chevron Corporation (international oil company). He served as Chevron's Chairman and chief executive officer from January 1, 19 ...

as chairman to succeed Keller, who would be reaching the mandatory retirement age of 65. Keller was to leave office as of January 1, 1989. Later in life he became a prolific San Francisco Bay Area

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 ...

. Including serving on the board of trustees for the College of Notre Dame (now Notre Dame de Namur University) in Belmont, California. He died from complications of orthopedic surgery at Stanford University Hospital near his home in San Mateo in 2008. Mr. Keller's son, Bill, (born January 18, 1949) is the former Executive Editor of The New York Times.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keller, George M. 1923 births 2008 deaths American chief executives American chemical engineers Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Chevron Corporation people United States Army Air Forces soldiers