Orville Wayne Rollins (1912–1991) is the co-founder, with his younger brother

John W. Rollins John William Rollins (August 24, 1916 – April 4, 2000) was an American businessman and politician from Greenville, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party and served as the 14th Lieutenant Governor of Delaware. He founded or acquir ...

, of

Rollins Inc. Rollins, Inc. is a North American pest control company serving residential and commercial clients. Operating globally through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Orkin, Inc., PCO Services (now Orkin Canada), HomeTeam Pest Defense, Western Pest Serv ...

, the US's largest pest control conglomerate.

Early life

Rollins was born in Ringgold, Georgia, in 1912, the son of John William Rollins and Claudia Nance Rollins, a farmer father and a schoolteacher mother. He graduated from Ringgold High School in 1930.

Career

Rollins worked for Standard-Coosa-Thatcher, a textile mill in Chattanooga, Tennessee, for 15 years, then for the Hercules Power Company as a TNT supervisor. He returned to Ringgold in 1945, and with his wife and younger brother began to rebuild a mineral springs resort. He then started a radio station to provide cheaper advertising for his brother's Virginia automobile dealership. Rollins Broadcasting was formed in 1948, and grew to control ten radio and four television stations. In 1964, with company annual revenues of $9 million, he borrowed $60 million in the first

leveraged buyout A leveraged buyout (LBO) is one company's acquisition of another company using a significant amount of borrowed money (leverage) to meet the cost of acquisition. The assets of the company being acquired are often used as collateral for the loan ...

in the US to buy

Orkin Orkin is an American company that provides residential and commercial pest control services. The company was founded in 1901 and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Rollins Inc. in 1964. Orkin has held research collaborations with universities a ...

from its family owners, and move into the

pest control Pest control is the regulation or management of a species defined as a pest; any animal, plant or fungus that impacts adversely on human activities or environment. The human response depends on the importance of the damage done and will range ...

business. In 1982, Rollins received the Golden Plate Award of the

American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet o ...

. In 1986, he received a

Horatio Alger Award The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is a nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, that was founded in 1947 to honor the achievements of outstanding Americans who have succeeded in spite of adversity and to emphas ...

for his "rags-to-riches" life story.

Personal life

He was married to Grace Crum Rollins. She was born on September 20, 1910 and died on August 8, 2009, aged 98. He had two sons,

Gary Rollins Gary W. Rollins (born August 30, 1944) is an American billionaire businessman. He is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Rollins, Inc., the US's largest pest control company. Early life Rollins was born on August 30, 1944. His father was O. ...

and Randall Rollins.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rollins, O. Wayne 1912 births 1991 deaths American chief executives People from Ringgold, Georgia 20th-century American businesspeople American company founders Businesspeople from Georgia (U.S. state)