Early Life
Alan Gerry was born in Liberty, New York, on December 24, 1929, to Jewish immigrants from Russia. Growing up, Gerry's family faced financial struggles. He dropped out of high school before graduating to join the U.S. Marine Corps, where he was placed in an electronics program.
Rise to Success
After serving in the Marine Corps, Gerry used the G.I. Bill to train in television repair. In 1951, he started a TV sales, installation, and repair business. In 1956, he founded Liberty Video, which later became Cablevision Industries. Gerry built Cablevision Industries into one of the largest privately owned cable companies in the United States. He expanded his company through strategic acquisitions and was an early adopter of fiber optic cable technology.
Key Business Strategies
Gerry's business acumen was evident in his ability to recognize market needs and capitalize on them. He initially created cable systems to improve TV reception in areas with poor signals. Gerry's success was also attributed to borrowing wisely and expanding his company into new markets. Gerry sold Cablevision Industries to Time Warner for $2.7 billion in 1996.
Philanthropy
After selling Cablevision Industries, Gerry focused on philanthropy and regional development in the Catskills. He established the Gerry Foundation to stimulate economic activity in Sullivan County, New York. He purchased the site of the 1969 Woodstock festival and transformed it into the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. Gerry has also donated millions to the National Cable Center in Denver, endowed a chair of orthopedic surgery at Harvard Medical School, and funded the Paul Gerry Dialysis Center.
