Rankin M. Smith Sr. (October 29, 1925 – October 26, 1997) was an American businessman and
philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
. A longtime resident of
Atlanta, Georgia, Smith was very active in the Atlanta community. Smith served as president of the Life Insurance Company of Georgia from 1970 to 1976. Smith was also the founding owner of the
National Football League's
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
.
Personal life
Smith was born October 29, 1925 in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended
North Fulton High School.
Following high school, he spent one year at
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of h ...
, then transferred to the
University of Georgia.
While at the University of Georgia he was a member of
Chi Phi Fraternity
Chi Phi () is considered by some as the oldest American men's college social fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The earliest of these organizations was for ...
. Following graduation he began working as an executive at Life Insurance Company of Georgia. He ascended to the position of president and
chairman of the board
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...
in 1970. He retired in 1978. Smith was married twice. First, to the former Miriam "MeMe" Wellman (1945-1974) with whom he fathered five children: Rankin, Carroll, Dorothy Ann, Taylor and Karen. These five were the genesis behind the corporate name of the Atlanta Falcons Football Club, The Five Smiths, Inc. In 1976, he married Charlotte Topping, the widow of former
New York Yankees owner
Dan Topping. He died on October 26, 1997, from complications resulting from
heart failure.
Purchase of the Atlanta Falcons
In 1965, the unexpectedly successful
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
wanted to expand to Atlanta. Smith, then an executive vice president at the Life Insurance Company of Georgia, was awarded an AFL franchise, but reneged on his agreement when the older National Football League offered him a franchise. He paid $8.5 million on June 30, 1965 for an NFL team based in Atlanta.
Smith secured exclusive rights to
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, often referred to as Fulton County Stadium and originally named Atlanta Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in the southeastern United States, located in Atlanta. The stadium was home of the Atlanta Braves of the ...
, where the Falcons began play in 1966 and played there for 26 seasons.
Smith was instrumental in the construction of the Falcons' next stadium, the
Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center ...
, threatening to move the Falcons elsewhere if a new stadium was not built.
When Smith backed out from the AFL agreement, the AFL franchise was then awarded to
Miami, which would start play as the Dolphins in 1966.
Smith continued to manage day-to-day operations of the team until 1990, when he turned control of the team over to his son Taylor Smith. The team was sold to
Arthur M. Blank in 2002 for $545 million.
On
Interstate 985
Interstate 985 (I-985) is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in Northeast Georgia. It links the Atlanta metropolitan area to the city of Gainesville via Suwanee. I-985 is also known as the Sidney Lanier Parkway, after the musician and po ...
in the northern suburbs of
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, Exit 12, for Spout Springs Road, leads to the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
training complex in
Flowery Branch
Flowery Branch is a city in Hall County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 9,391. It is part of the Gainesville, Georgia metropolitan area, and lies on the shores of Lake Lanier.
History
Flowery Branch wa ...
and is named in Smith's honor.
Philanthropy
Smith was extremely generous and made significant donations to causes in and around Atlanta, a tradition his estate continued after his death. He was a major contributor to the
Fernbank Museum of Natural History
Fernbank Museum of Natural History, in Atlanta, Georgia, is a museum that presents exhibitions and programming about natural history. Fernbank Museum has a number of permanent exhibitions and regularly hosts temporary exhibitions in its expansi ...
. In addition to making individual contributions, he led a fundraising drive which raised $43 million
for the museum.
The Museum's
IMAX theater
IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating.
Graeme ...
is named for Smith.
In 1985 Smith founded the Atlanta Falcons Youth Foundation. It provides grants to non-profit organizations across Georgia, focusing on programs which benefit children.
Following his death, three of Smith's children (Rankin Smith Jr., Dorothy Smith Knox, and Taylor Smith) donated $3.5 million to the University of Georgia Athletic Association in his memory. The donation was a major component of the University's “Investing in Champions” initiative. In recognition of the donation the university named the major building built under the program, a student-athlete academic center, after Smith.
References
Further reading
James Quick and Rodney D. Fort, ''Paydirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports'' (Princeton University Press, 1992), , p. 409.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Rankin M. Sr.
1925 births
1997 deaths
Atlanta Falcons owners
Emory University alumni
University of Georgia alumni
Businesspeople from Atlanta
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American philanthropists
Philanthropists from Georgia (U.S. state)