Jack Kent Cooke (October 25, 1912 – April 6, 1997) was a Canadian-American entrepreneur who became one of the most widely-known executives in North American professional sports. He owned the Washington Redskins (NFL), the Los Angeles Lakers (NBA), and the Los Angeles Kings (NHL), and built the The Forum in Inglewood, California. is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday in the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday in the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 96th day of the year (97th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the band, see 1997 (band). ... For other uses, see Redskins (disambiguation). ... NFL redirects here. ... The Los Angeles Lakers are a National Basketball Association (NBA) team based in Los Angeles, California. ... NBA redirects here. ... The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). ... NHL redirects here. ... The Forum, known for a time as the Great Western Forum, is an indoor arena in Inglewood, California owned by the Faithful Central Bible Church, which uses it for its Sunday morning service. ... Nickname: Location of Inglewood in Los Angeles County, California Coordinates: , Country State County Los Angeles Established 1888 Incorporated February 14, 1908 Government  - Mayor Roosevelt F. Dorn Area  - City  9. ...

Early career

Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Cooke moved with his family to The Beaches area of Toronto in 1921, where he attended Malvern Collegiate Institute. Motto: Together Aspire - Together Achieve Location in the province of Ontario, Canada Coordinates: , Country Province Incorporated June 9, 1846[1] Government  - Mayor Fred Eisenberger  - City Council Hamilton City Council  - MPs List of MPs Dean Allison Chris Charlton David Christopherson Wayne Marston David Sweet  - MPPs List of MPPs Sophia Aggelonitis Andrea... The Beaches is an upper-middle class neighbourhood and popular tourist destination located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Malvern Collegiate Institute is a Toronto high school that was founded in 1903. ...

He was an encyclopedia salesman in the 1930s before becoming a runner on the floor of the Toronto Stock Exchange. He was selling soap in Northern Ontario for Colgate-Palmolive in 1936 when he met Roy Thomson, who hired Cooke to run radio station CJCS in Stratford, Ontario. The two became partners in 1941, buying radio stations and newspapers in Ontario and Quebec. “TSX” redirects here. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Roy Herbert Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson of Fleet (June 5, 1894 – August 4, 1976), was a newspaper proprietor and media entrepreneur. ... CJCS-AM is a canadian radio station in Stratford, Ontario with an oldies format at AM 1240 KHz. ... Stratford is a city on the Avon River in Perth County in southwestern Ontario, Canada with a population of 30,461 in 2006, although the population is actually at or in excess of 40,000. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Official languages English (de facto) Government - Lieutenant-Governor David C. Onley - Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 106 - Senate seats 24 Confederation July 1, 1867 (1st) Area... This article is about the Canadian province. ...

With the financial backing of J. P. Bickell, Cooke purchased CKCL in 1945, changing the call letters to CKEY. He also continued to work with Thomson, and the two acquired the Canadian edition of Liberty magazine in 1948, naming it New Liberty. The following year, Thomson sold his half of the magazine to Cooke. John Paris J. P. Bickell (September 26, 1884 – August 22, 1951) was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and sports team owner. ... CHKT is a Canadian radio station, airing at 1430 AM in Toronto, Ontario. ... Liberty was a general-interest weekly magazine, published in the United States between 1924 and 1950. ...

In 1951, Cooke ventured into sports, acquiring the minor league Toronto Maple Leafs baseball club. He transformed the games from straight athletic contests into complete entertainment packages, with a long list of special promotions and celebrity appearances. With his focus on entertainment, Cooke was compared to St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck. Five months after becoming owner, Cooke presented a 48-page booklet to all the teams in the league, outlining his promotional strategies. He was named minor league exeuctive of the year by The Sporting News in 1952. That same year, Cooke purchased Consolidated Press, publisher of Saturday Night magazine. He made an unsuccessful bid for The Globe and Mail newspaper in 1955. Minor leagues in the sense intended in this article are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. ... The Toronto Maple Leafs were a high-level minor league baseball club located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that played from 1896 to 1967. ... (For the 1901-02 American League team known as the Baltimore Orioles, see New York Yankees. ... William Louis Veeck Jr. ... The Sporting News (TSN) is an American-based sports newspaper. ... Saturday Night is a Canadian general interest magazine. ... The Globe and Mail is a large English language national newspaper based in Toronto, Canada, and printed in seven cities across Canada. ...

While owning the Maple Leafs baseball team, Cooke set his sights on bringing Major League Baseball to Toronto. He tried to purchase the St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Athletics, and Detroit Tigers when they came up for sale, and in 1959 he became one of the founding team owners in the Continental League, a proposed third major league for professional baseball. The league disbanded a year later without ever staging a game. Cooke still hoped to get an American League expansion team in Toronto, but the city's lack of a major league venue became an impasse. Cooke would sell the Maple Leafs in 1964 and was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985. MLB and Major Leagues redirect here. ... (For the 1901-02 American League team known as the Baltimore Orioles, see New York Yankees. ... There have been three professional baseball teams based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania known as the Philadelphia Athletics: 1. ... Major league affiliations American League (1901–present) Central Division (1998–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 2, 5, 6, 16, 23, 42 Name Detroit Tigers (1901–present) Other nicknames The Bless You Boys Ballpark Comerica Park (2000–present) Tiger Stadium (1912-1999) Briggs Stadium (1938-1960) Navin Field (1912-1938) Bennett... The Continental League (or formally the Continental League of Professional Baseball Clubs) was a proposed third major league for baseball, announced in 1959 and scheduled to begin play in the 1961 season. ... The American League (or formally the American League of Professional Baseball Clubs) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States of America and Canada. ... The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum is a museum located in St. ...

In 1960, Cooke lost a bid to obtain a license for the first privately-owned TV station in Toronto. There had been nine bids in a highly competitive process, and the license was awarded to a consortium comprised of Aldred-Rogers Broadcasting and the Telegram Corporation, which launched CFTO-TV. Aldred-Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. ... Telegram Corporation was a media outlet created under a joint venture between John Bassetts Toronto Telegram and the Eaton family, as one of three co-owners of CFTO-TV in 1960. ... CFTO-TV (now identifying as CTV Toronto) is a television station, licensed to, and serving Toronto, Canada, and surrounding areas. ...

Move to the United States

Within years of being turned down for the Toronto TV license, Cooke applied for U.S. citizenship. With the support of Francis E. Walter, Cooke quickly became a citizen when both houses of Congress and President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved a waiver of the usual five-year waiting period. He sold CKEY at the end of 1960 and Consolidated Press in 1961. Francis Eugene Walter (May 26, 1894 – May 31, 1963) was a Democrat member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. ... Dwight David Eisenhower (October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American General and politician, who served as the thirty-fourth President of the United States (1953–1961). ...

At the time, Canada and the U.S. both had laws prohibiting foreign control of radio and TV stations. Cooke had entered the U.S. broadcasting industry in August 1959 by acquiring Pasadena, California radio station KRLA through his brother, Donald Cooke, a U.S. citizen. Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... KRLA AM 870 is a conservative talk radio station owned by Salem Communications. ...

Cooke formed American Cablevision in the 1960s and acquired several cable television companies. He acquired majority ownership of TelePrompTer cable TV and sold it in the late 1970s for $646 million.^[1] In 1980, he bought the Chrysler Building in New York City, one of the world's most renowned skyscrapers. In 1985, Cooke bought the Los Angeles Daily News for $176 million.^[2] A year later, he acquired another cable TV company.^[3] Coaxial cable is often used to transmit cable television into the house. ... The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco skyscraper in New York City, located on the east side of Manhattan at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Los Angeles Daily News is the second largest circulating daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California. ...

Sports ownership

Washington Redskins

In 1961, Jack Kent Cooke purchased a 25 percent interest in the Washington Redskins, becoming majority owner in 1974 and sole owner in 1985. In September 1965, he purchased the Los Angeles Lakers for $52.2 million. For other uses, see Redskins (disambiguation). ...

While he was owner of the Redskins, Cooke's team won three Super Bowls under head coach Joe Gibbs in 1983, 1988, and 1992. Cooke fought hard to prevent Baltimore from getting an NFL team after the Baltimore Colts left for Indianapolis because Baltimore was declared Redskin territory after the move. However, Art Modell succeeded in moving the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore, where they were renamed the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens began play in 1996, what would turn out to be Cooke's final NFL season. The winning Super Bowl team receives the Vince Lombardi Trophy. ... Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is a Hall of Fame American football coach and NASCAR Championship team owner. ... Date January 30, 1983 Stadium Rose Bowl Stadium City Pasadena, California MVP John Riggins, Running back Favorite Dolphins by 3 National anthem Leslie Easterbrook Coin toss Elroy Hirsch Referee Jerry Markbreit Halftime show Bob Jani Productions presents KaleidoSUPERscope with the Los Angeles Super Drill Team Attendance 103,667 TV in... Date January 31, 1988 Stadium Jack Murphy Stadium City San Diego, California MVP Doug Williams, Quarterback Favorite Broncos by 3 National anthem Herb Alpert Coin toss Don Hutson Referee Bob McElwee Halftime show Chubby Checker and The Rockettes Attendance 73,302 TV in the United States Network ABC Announcers Al... Date January 26, 1992 Stadium Metrodome City Minneapolis, Minnesota MVP Mark Rypien, Quarterback Favorite Redskins by 7 National anthem Harry Connick, Jr. ... The Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ... Arthur B. Modell (born June 23, 1925, Brooklyn, New York) is a former National Football League team owner of the Cleveland Browns from 1961-1995 and the Baltimore Ravens from 1996-2004. ... Browns redirects here. ... City Baltimore, Maryland Team colors Purple, Black, and Gold Head Coach Brian Billick Owner Steve Bisciotti General manager Ozzie Newsome Mascot The Ravens: Edgar, Allan, & Poe League/Conference affiliations National Football League (1996–present) American Football Conference (1996-present) AFC Central (1996-2001) AFC North (2002-present) Team history Baltimore...

In 1997, Cooke completed a stadium deal in Landover, Maryland, for a new home for his team. Initially, the community was called Raljon—a name devised by Cooke by combining the names of his sons Ralph and John. The name fell into disuse in 1999. Cooke died in 1997 of cardiac arrest at age 84. The stadium was posthumously named Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, which was changed to FedExField in 1999. Landover is an area of Prince Georges County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America. ... Raljon, Maryland was a place name used from 1997 to 1999 for the area of Landover, Maryland, around Jack Kent Cooke Stadium (now called FedEx Field), where the Washington Redskins play. ... FedExField (originally Jack Kent Cooke Stadium) is a football stadium located in Landover, Maryland, a community off of the Capital Beltway (I-495) in Prince Georges County near the site of the old Capital Centre later called USAir Arena. ...

In his will, Cooke left the team and stadium to his foundation with instructions to sell it. Cooke's son, John Kent Cooke, tried to put in a competitive bid to keep the team in the family, but it instead went to local businessman Daniel Snyder and his associates for a record-setting $800 million. This article is about the Washington Redskins owner. ...

Los Angeles Kings

As a Canadian, Cooke's first love was ice hockey, and he was determined to bring the National Hockey League to Los Angeles. When the Pacific Coast Hockey League, which maintained franchises in California, threatened to become a major league and compete for the Stanley Cup, Cooke paid the NHL $2 million to establish a team in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Kings were welcomed into the League in 1967. Ice hockey, known simply as hockey in areas where it is more common than field hockey, is a team sport played on ice. ... NHL redirects here. ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... The Pacific Coast Hockey League was an amateur ice hockey league with teams in western United States and Canada that played from 1944 to 1952. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... The Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (French: ) is the championship trophy of the National Hockey League (NHL), the major professional ice hockey league in Canada and the United States. ... The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). ...

In order to accommodate his new hockey team as well as the Lakers, Cooke announced that he would be building "the most beautiful arena in the world". He delivered on his promise, unveiling The Forum in the L.A. suburb of Inglewood to rave reviews. The building was soon nicknamed The Fabulous Forum. The Kings struggled both on the ice and at the gate, however. Cooke had been told that there were over 300,000 former Canadians living within a three-hour drive of Los Angeles, and remarked, "Now I know why they left Canada: They hate hockey!" Cooke sold the Kings and Lakers in 1979. The Forum, known for a time as the Great Western Forum, is an indoor arena in Inglewood, California owned by the Faithful Central Bible Church, which uses it for its Sunday morning service. ... Nickname: Location of Inglewood in Los Angeles County, California Coordinates: , Country State County Los Angeles Established 1888 Incorporated February 14, 1908 Government  - Mayor Roosevelt F. Dorn Area  - City  9. ...

Los Angeles Wolves

In 1967, Cooke was a founder of the United Soccer Association and owned the Los Angeles Wolves team. In 1971, he was financial backer of the first Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier boxing match, held at Madison Square Garden and won by Frazier. In 1967, two pro soccer leagues started in the United States: the FIFA-sanctioned United Soccer Association and the unsanctioned National Professional Soccer League. ... Los Angeles Wolves are a former United States professional soccer team, owned by Jack Kent Cooke, that played for two seasons during the 1960s. ... For other persons named Muhammad Ali, see Muhammad Ali (disambiguation). ... For the Major League Baseball player and manager, see Joe Frazier (baseball) Joseph William Smokin Joe Frazier (born January 12, 1944 in Beaufort, South Carolina) is a former world heavyweight boxing champion, active mostly in the 1960s and 1970s. ... Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG, known colloquially simply as The Garden, has been the name of four arenas in New York City, United States. ...

Elmendorf Farm

A lover of horses and a fan of Thoroughbred horse racing, Cooke owned Kent Farms, a 640-acre estate in Middleburg, Virginia, not far from Washington, D.C. In December of 1984 he purchased the historic Elmendorf Farm in Lexington, Kentucky from the estate of Maxwell Gluck. He bred and raced a number of successful horses, notably Flying Continental whose wins included the 1990 Jockey Club Gold Cup. For the processor with the same codename , see Athlon. ... Horse-racing is an equestrian sporting activity which has been practiced over the centuries; the chariot races of Roman times were an early example, as was the contest of the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. ... Motto: Semel Et Semper Coordinates: State Virginia County Loudon Mayor Betsy Davis Area    - City 1. ... Nickname: Location in the Commonwealth of Kentucky Coordinates: , Country United States State Kentucky Counties Fayette Government  - Mayor Jim Newberry (D) Area  - City  285. ... The Jockey Club Gold Cup is a prestigious thoroughbred horse race open to horses three years old and upward, established in 1919. ...

Private life

Cooke was married five times; two of those marriages were to his final wife. His first marriage, to Barbara Jean Carnegie in Toronto in 1934, ended in 1979 in what was at the time the largest divorce settlement in history—$42 million. The presiding judge was Joseph Wapner, who later came to fame as the judge on The People's Court. Judge Wapner Judge Joseph A. Wapner (born November 15, 1919 in Los Angeles, California) pioneered real-life courtroom television with The Peoples Court, which ran in syndication from 1981 to 1993 for 2,484 episodes. ... Judge Joseph Wapner, who presided over cases from 1981 to 1993. ...

His second marriage, to Jeanne Maxwell, lasted 10 months. Cooke's third wife, Suzanne Elizabeth Martin, claimed that their 1987 marriage was contingent upon her getting an abortion of a fetus Cooke had conceived. At the time, Cooke was 74 and his wife was 31. She had the baby, whom she named Jacqueline Kent Cooke, and the marriage was dissolved after 73 days. She sued Cooke for $15 million.^[4]

Following his death, it was revealed that his final wife, Marlene Ramallo Chalmers—a former drug runner from Bolivia who was 40 years his junior—had been cut out of his will.^[5] They had married in 1990, divorced in 1993, and remarried in 1995. She filed suit against the estate and reportedly received $20 million in a settlement reached about a year after Cooke's death.

The bulk of Cooke's $825 million estate went into establishing the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to help struggling people achieve the same success that he enjoyed. The stated mission of the foundation is to "help young people of exceptional promise reach their full potential through education." The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation was founded in 2000 through the will of Jack Kent Cooke. ...

The other terms of his will reveal multiple changes of heart regarding his wives and children, and received considerable public attention at the time of his death.^[6]

References

The Toronto Star is Canadas highest-circulation newspaper, though its print edition is distributed almost entirely within Ontario. ... is the 33rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... The Toronto Star is Canadas highest-circulation newspaper, though its print edition is distributed almost entirely within Ontario. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... The Globe and Mail is a large English language national newspaper based in Toronto, Canada, and printed in seven cities across Canada. ... is the 3rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... The Toronto Star is Canadas highest-circulation newspaper, though its print edition is distributed almost entirely within Ontario. ... is the 237th day of the year (238th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... The Hamilton Spectator, founded in 1846 as The Hamilton Spectator and Journal of Commerce, is a newspaper published each day but Sunday in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. ... is the 130th day of the year (131st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the band, see 1997 (band). ...

Other sources

• Jack Kent Cooke: A Career Biography, by Adrian Kinnane, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, 2004

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation was founded in 2000 through the will of Jack Kent Cooke. ...

External links

• The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation