Voting Station

Edgar Bronfman, Sr.

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Entrepreneur

The Resume

    (June 20, 1929-December 21, 2013)
    Born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
    President, CEO, and Treasurer of Seagram (1971-94)
    President of the World Jewish Congress (1981-2007)
    Net worth of $2.5 billion at his death

Why he might be annoying:

    He inherited his position at Seagram from his father.
    He was married five times (including twice to Rita Webb), resulting in three divorces (including two from Rita Webb) and an annulment.
    He and his second wife, Lady Carolyn Townshend, separated after ten days (1973).
    He broke with Jewish tradition by naming his son after himself.
    He resigned from the World Jewish Congress over complaints that he ran the organization like his own private fiefdom and without proper financial oversight.

Why he might not be annoying:

    In the early 1970s, when a human resources director recommended that he fire an employee for being gay, he fired the HR director on the spot.
    As President of the World Jewish Congress, he held negotiations with the USSR that resulted in Soviet Jews being allowed to learn Hebrew and to practice their religion openly.
    He initiated the negotiations that resulted in Swiss banks paying restitution to Holocaust survivors.
    He received the French Legion of Honor (1982) and the US Presidential Medal of Freedom (1999).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying