Robert Bradley Haas (June 12, 1947 – September 28, 2021) was an American investor, photographer, and motorcycle collector.

Early life and education

Haas was born in Cleveland. He grew up there, but left home when he was a high school junior, moving to a rooming house. He received a Bachelor's degree in psychology from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

in 1969 and a degree in law from the

Harvard University Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

in 1972.

Financial career

In 1984 he and Thomas Hicks formed the investment company Hicks & Haas in Dallas, Texas. Together, they purchased 49 percent of the soft drink companies 7-Up and Dr Pepper and then resold the combined companies in 1988 to Prudential-Bache Securities for $600 million. After Hicks & Haas dissolved in 1989, Haas co-founded Haas Wheat & Harrison in 1992 to focus on middle-market transactions. Among his co-founders were Thomas Harrison, who had previously worked with Haas at Hicks & Haas and Douglas Wheat, a former investment banker with

Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) was a U.S. investment bank founded by William H. Donaldson, Richard Jenrette, and Dan Lufkin in 1959. Its businesses included securities underwriting; sales and trading; investment and merchant banking; fina ...

.Former President and Co-Founder of Haas Wheat & Partners Starts New Investment Firm
October, 2006 At the time of his death Haas was a senior adviser for New MainStream Capital, an investment firm.

Photography career

Haas took up photography in 1994 with no prior experience. After buying $2000 USD in camera gear, and learning how to use it, he did his first aerial photography from a helicopter on a Kenyan safari. He went on to work for

National Geographic Magazine ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

as a photographer for ten years, and to publish four coffee-table books on his aerial photography over Africa and Latin America.

Motorcycle collection

In 2012 Haas began collecting motorcycles. In 2018, he opened the ''Haas Moto Museum & Sculpture Gallery'' in Dallas to display the collection, which includes several custom-made motorcycles. He was the executive producer of the film ''Leaving Tracks'', which documented his motorcycle collecting and profiled several custom motorcycle builders who contributed to his collection.

Books

*''Through the Eyes of the Gods'', 2005 *''Through the Eyes of the Condor'', 2007 *''Through The Eyes Of The Vikings'', 2010 *''I dreamed of Flying like a Bird'', 2010

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haas, Robert 1947 births 2021 deaths Businesspeople from Cleveland American investment bankers 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Photographers from Ohio 20th-century American photographers 21st-century American photographers Aerial photographers National Geographic photographers Nature photographers Landscape photographers American collectors Museum founders Yale University alumni Harvard Law School alumni