Russell Goldencloud Weiner (born 1970) is an American businessman and works in political fundraising.

Early life and education

Weiner is the son of Michael Weiner, better known as conservative radio talk show host

Michael Savage Michael Alan Weiner (born March 31, 1942), known by his professional name Michael Savage, is a far-right author, conspiracy theorist, political commentator, activist, and former radio host. Savage is best known as the host of '' The Savage Na ...

, and Janet Weiner. He is Jewish. Weiner graduated from Redwood High School in

Larkspur, California Larkspur is a city in Marin County, California, United States. Larkspur is located south of San Rafael, at an elevation of . As of the 2020 Census, the city's population was 13,064. Larkspur's Police Department is shared with that of the n ...

and graduated from

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

with a bachelor's degree in political science. He organized events for the Paul Revere Society and worked as a travel consultant.

Career

He is the creator of the

Rockstar energy drink Rockstar (stylized as ROCKST★R or ЯR) is an energy drink created in 2001, which, , has a 0.3% market share of the US non-alcoholic beverage market. Rockstar is based in Purchase, New York. , Rockstar Energy Drink was available in more than 20 ...

. Weiner is also the founder and

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of his own company, which is based in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. In 2016, he was 494th on the ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' list of the 500 richest Americans with an estimated worth of 3.4 billion dollars.

Politics

He co-founded the Paul Revere Society with his father. In 1998, he ran as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

for the 6th district seat in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

, receiving an endorsement from the president of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

branch in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. In June 1998, Weiner won the Republican primary election by five votes. His campaign positions included advocacy for Proposition 227, the ballot initiative eliminating

bilingual education In bilingual education, students are taught in two (or more) languages. It is distinct from learning a second language as a subject because both languages are used for instruction in different content areas like math, science, and history. The t ...

in public schools, and protection of

old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

s. He lost to incumbent Democrat Kerry Mazzoni receiving 13.3% of the vote. After the election, some election posters depicting him were vandalized in an

anti-Semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

manner. In 2009, Weiner donated $25,000 to the California gubernatorial campaign of

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...

, who was the Democratic mayor of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. Newsom returned the donation and Weiner gave it to charity.

Personal life

Weiner has been in the real estate industry; he buys and sells houses. In 2006, he bought the

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most ...

home of basketball player

Carlos Boozer Carlos Austin Boozer Jr. (born November 20, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. The two-time NBA All-Star played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Utah Jazz, Chicago Bulls, and Los Angeles Lakers, and then spent his last seas ...

for $10 million. In 2008, he listed another home there for about $3 million (originally it was nearly $15 million based on replacement costs) and sold it for $8 million in 2009. Weiner lives in

Delray Beach Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020 was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States Census. Located 52 miles (83 kilometers) north of Miami, Delray Beach is in the ...

, Florida.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weiner, Russell 1970 births Living people 20th-century American Jews American drink industry businesspeople American chief executives of food industry companies American political fundraisers Place of birth missing (living people) Businesspeople from Los Angeles California Republicans People from Los Angeles County, California People from Larkspur, California People from West Hollywood, California San Diego State University alumni American billionaires 21st-century American Jews Redwood High School (Larkspur, California) alumni