use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , nationality = American , education = , alma_mater =

Heidelberg University } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, B ...

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, occupation = , years_active = , era = , employer = , organization = , known_for = , notable_works = , boards = , spouse =

Ray Dolby Ray Milton Dolby (; January 18, 1933 – September 12, 2013) was an American engineer and inventor of the noise reduction system known as Dolby NR. He helped develop the video tape recorder while at Ampex and was the founder of Dolby Lab ...

(died 2013) , children = 2, including Tom Dolby , family = , awards = , website = Dagmar Dolby (1941/1942) is an American philanthropist billionaire worth $5.5 billion as of December 2021. The source of her wealth comes from Dolby Laboratories, founded by her late husband

Early life and education

Dolby was born in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1941 as Dagmar Bäumert. She grew up in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

, Germany. She met her future husband

in 1962 while she was living in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and he was a

Marshall Scholar The Marshall Scholarship is a postgraduate scholarship for "intellectually distinguished young Americans ndtheir country's future leaders" to study at any university in the United Kingdom. It is widely considered one of the most prestigious sc ...

studying physics. The pair traveled to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where Ray served as an advisor to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

for two years before they returned to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

by car. In 1965 in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, Ray founded Dolby Laboratories, which would go on to pioneer noise reduction and

surround sound Surround sound is a technique for enriching the fidelity and depth of sound reproduction by using multiple audio channels from speakers that surround the listener (surround channels). Its first application was in movie theaters. Prior to s ...

technology and serve as the source of the Dolby family's wealth. Dagmar and Ray married in 1966.

Philanthropy

In 1976, Dagmar Dolby and her family moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " 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 fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, the new headquarters of her husband's company, Dolby Laboratories. She became a fixture of the city's social scene and focused on philanthropy. Ray Dolby was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease around 2009, which precipitated Dagmar's involvement in Alzheimer's research and advocacy. The Dolby family donated $21 million to the California Pacific Medical Center in 2011, though the donation wasn't announced until 2014. They also gave $16 million in 2006 and $20 million in 2011 to build the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Regeneration Medicine Building for stem cell research at the University of California-San Francisco. When Ray Dolby died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

in 2013, and Dagmar assumed ownership of nearly half of Dolby Laboratories. She donated $52.6 million to Cambridge University in 2015 to fund construction of the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Court, a student living area. In 2017, Dagmar became a signatory of

The Giving Pledge The Giving Pledge is a campaign to encourage extremely wealthy people to contribute a majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes. , the pledge has 236 signatories from 28 countries. Most of the signatories of the pledge are billionaires, a ...

, with a focus on

reproductive rights Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to reproduction and reproductive health that vary amongst countries around the world. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights as follows: Reproductive rights rest o ...

, stem cell research, and research on

mood disorder A mood disorder, also known as an affective disorder, is any of a group of conditions of mental and behavioral disorder where a disturbance in the person's mood is the main underlying feature. The classification is in the '' Diagnostic and St ...

s and Alzheimer's disease.

Personal life

She lives in the

Pacific Heights Pacific Heights is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. It has panoramic views of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Palace of Fine Arts, Alcatraz, and the Presidio. The Pacific Heights Residents Association defines the neig ...

neighborhood of

, and has four granddaughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolby, Dagmar 1940s births American billionaires Female billionaires Living people American women philanthropists American socialites California Democrats German American