John Louis Tishman (January 24, 1926 – February 6, 2016) was an American

real-estate developer Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to others. R ...

, and chief executive officer of

Tishman Realty & Construction Tishman Realty & Construction Co., Inc. is an American corporation founded in 1898 that owns and develops real estate. The company is known for being the contractor that built the original World Trade Center in New York City. Tishman Constructio ...

Life

John Louis Tishman was born to

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

parents, Rose and Louis Tishman, on January 24, 1926, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. His father worked in the family construction business founded by his grandfather Julius Tishman and died when he was 4. In 1946, he graduated from

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, where he studied electrical engineering. After school, he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and then taught mathematics before joining the family construction business,

, then run by his uncle David Tishman (father of

Robert Tishman Robert Valentine Tishman (April 7, 1916 – October 11, 2010) was an American real estate developer who was head of the family-owned firm Tishman Realty & Construction until it was disestablished in 1977, and was one of the two founding partners ...

, the co-founder of

Tishman Speyer Properties Tishman Speyer Properties is an American company that invests in real estate. History The firm was founded in 1978 by Robert Tishman and Jerry Speyer. In March 1988, the company announced its first project in Europe, the construction of a 70 ...

). The firm acted as both a developer and general contractor until 1980, when it became solely a construction firm. He was manager during the construction of

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

, the

John Hancock Center The John Hancock Center is a 100-story, 1,128-foot supertall skyscraper located in Chicago, Illinois. Located in the Magnificent Mile district, the building was officially renamed 875 North Michigan Avenue in 2018. The skyscraper was designed ...

, and the first

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

Philanthropy

He established the Tishman Construction Management Program, at University of Michigan, with a $5 million gift. He supported the New School, with a $1 million gift.

Personal life

In 1953, he married Suzanne Weisberg (died 2005); they had two children, Daniel Russell Tishman and Katherine Tishman Blacklock. His son Dan is chairman and CEO of the family company renamed the Tishman Construction Corporation.

Death

Tishman died on February 6, 2016, at his home in Bedford, New York.

References

External links

Profile at Bloomberg.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tishman, John L. 1926 births 2016 deaths American real estate businesspeople 20th-century American Jews Businesspeople from New York City University of Michigan College of Engineering alumni Tishman family 21st-century American Jews