Robert Sargent Shriver III (born April 28, 1954) is an American activist, attorney, and journalist. He was a member of the Santa Monica City Council from 2004 to 2012, serving as mayor pro tem in 2006 and as mayor during part of 2010. A member of the Kennedy family, he is a nephew of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy and former Senators Robert F. "Bobby" Kennedy and Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy.

Early life and education

Shriver was born at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois, to Sargent Shriver (1915—2011) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver (1921—2009), the first of their five children. His siblings are, Maria (born 1955), Timothy (born 1959), Mark (born 1964) and Anthony (born 1965). Bobby attended Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, where he was a member of the Scroll and Key Society. He graduated with a B.A. in American studies with ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

'' honors. He graduated from Yale Law School with a J.D. in 1981.

Business career and philanthropy

After graduating from law school, Shriver clerked for a year for

Judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

Stephen R. Reinhardt at the

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

, which is headquartered in San Francisco, California. He then moved to New York City to work in a venture capital business at James D. Wolfensohn, Inc. Along with father Sarge, Eli Jacobs, and Larry Lucchino, Bobby was an investor from 1989 to 1993 in the Baltimore Orioles, a professional-baseball team based in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

, Maryland. Shriver is an

attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...

. He is also president of RSS Inc., a

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

music,

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and philanthropic company. (The letters RSS are Shriver's initials.) In 1987, he produced a prime-time television feature about the Special Olympics, an organization for disabled young people and founded by his mother in 1968. This and subsequent productions have raised in excess of US$55 million for the Special Olympics program. He has also produced several films, including '' True Lies'' (1994), which starred

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. ''Time'' ...

– whose ex-wife is Shriver's sister, Maria Shriver. In 2002, Shriver was a co-founder – with U2 lead singer

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...

– of DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade in Africa), a multinational, non-government organization whose purpose is to obtain social equality and justice for Africa through debt relief; adjust trade rules which burden Africa; eliminate the African AIDS epidemic; and strengthen democracy with more

accountability Accountability, in terms of ethics and governance, is equated with answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and the expectation of account-giving. As in an aspect of governance, it has been central to discussions related to problems in the publ ...

by the wealthiest nations and African leaders with

transparency Transparency, transparence or transparent most often refer to: * Transparency (optics), the physical property of allowing the transmission of light through a material They may also refer to: Literal uses * Transparency (photography), a still ...

towards the people. With Shriver's involvement, DATA, in turn, was one of the founding organizations in 2004 of the ONE Campaign, a U.S.-based, non-partisan, non-profit organization which aims to increase

U.S. government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...

funding for and effectiveness of international-aid programs. In 2006, he and Bono also co-founded (RED) to bring the world's biggest companies into the fight against AIDS and generate money for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. To date, (RED) has generated over $700M and impacted over 245 million lives.

Political career

California State Parks and Recreation Commission

After Schwarzenegger became the

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

in 2003, he reappointed Shriver as

chairman 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 grou ...

of the California State Park and Recreation Commission overseeing the state's parks and gardens. He had first been appointed by prior California Governor

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...

. In 2005, Shriver, the commission chairman, and

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

, the commission vice chairman, led a commission panel in its unanimous opposition to a six-lane, toll road that would cut through San Onofre State Beach (north of San Diego) that includes Trestles, a collection of

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

spots – one of Southern California's most-cherished. Shriver and Eastwood also supported a 2006

lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

to block the toll road and urged the

California Coastal Commission The California Coastal Commission (CCC) is a state agency within the California Natural Resources Agency with quasi-judicial control of land and public access along the state's coastline. Its mission as defined in the California Coastal Act is " ...

to reject the project, which it did in February 2008.Young, Samantha.
"Schwarzenegger removes his brother-in-law and Clint Eastwood from Calif. parks panel"
. '' The Associated Press'' (via '' The San Diego Union-Tribune''). March 20, 2008. Accessed May 28, 2008. In March 2008, Shriver and Eastwood, whose terms had expired, were not reappointed. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) asked for a legislative investigation into the decision not to re-appoint Shriver and Eastwood, citing their opposition to the toll-road extension.Staff writer (March 22, 2008
"Group wants probe into governor's removal of Eastwood, Shriver"
. '' The Associated Press'' (via '' The San Diego Union-Tribune''). Accessed May 28, 2008. Schwarzenegger's press release appointing Alice Huffman and

Lindy DeKoven Lindy DeKoven is a novelist, television executive, producer, and California state commissioner. She was executive vice president of NBC overseeing movies and miniseries and then served as an executive producer at Paramount/CBS where she developed th ...

to replace Shriver and Eastwood makes no mention of a reason for the commission change.Press Release: Press release (May 23, 2008).
"Governor Schwarzenegger Announces Appointments"
- Office of the Governor, State of California. Accessed May 28, 2008.(May 23, 2008)
"Schwarzenegger names replacements for parks panel"
- '' The Associated Press'' (via '' Yahoo! News''). Accessed May 28, 2008.

Santa Monica City Council

In November 2004 Shriver ran for, and was elected to, a seat on the

Santa Monica City Council Santa Monica City Council is the governing body of Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on Calif ...

. He stated that he decided to run for the seat after a dispute with the city over the height of the hedges at his home. He was one of thirteen candidates for four at-large council seats and received 23,260 votes, or 16.5 percent, of the vote. The other three winning candidates received 16,710, 14,475, and 13,408 votes. He ran for re-election in 2008, again in a race in which thirteen candidates were running for four open seats. He again received the most votes, although he won by a smaller margin over the candidate receiving the second-most votes. Shriver received 24,298 votes, or 18.56 percent of the vote. The other three winning candidates received 20,232, 19,145, and 17,202 votes. Shriver's second term ended November 2012. In March 2009 Shriver was reported to be considering becoming a candidate in the

2010 California Attorney General election The 2010 California Attorney General election was held on November 2, 2010, to choose the Attorney General of California. The primary election was held on June 8, 2010. Incumbent Attorney General Jerry Brown, a Democrat, was elected Governor ...

. He did not run, and Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, was elected Attorney General.

Candidacy for Los Angeles County Supervisor

On January 21, 2014, the '' Los Angeles Times'' reported that Shriver launched his campaign for Los Angeles County supervisor. Shriver was defeated by former state senator Sheila Kuehl.

Personal life

He married Malissa Feruzzi on May 7, 2005.Staff writer (2005-15-08).
"JFK nephew Bobby Shriver weds"
'' The Associated Press'' (via '' USA Today''). Accessed August 13, 2009. They have two daughters, Natasha Hunt Lee (born 1997) and Rosemary Kennedy Shriver (born 2009).

Awards

In 2007, Shriver receive

The Advertising Club's ''Silver Medal Award''—also known as the Advertising Person of the Year Award—for his work with (RED). The annual award recognizes those who have made outstanding contributions to the advertising industry, furthering industry standards, demonstrating creative excellence and responsibility in areas of social concern. In February 2008, he was honored with amfAR, amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS's Award of Courage for his outstanding contribution to HIV/AIDS research and awareness.

References

External links

Santa Monica City Council
Santa Monica City Council official website
Shriver biography
on Santa Monica City Council official website
"#17 President - Product Red"
portal to podcast of February 25, 2007, presentation by Tasmin Smith,

's President (hosted at USF MBA Podcast's website) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shriver, Bobby 1954 births HIV/AIDS activists American humanitarians American male journalists Journalists from California Record producers from Illinois American sports businesspeople Television producers from California Baltimore Orioles owners California city council members California Democrats California lawyers American people of German descent American people of Irish descent Kennedy family Living people Mayors of Santa Monica, California Santa Monica City Council members Lawyers from Chicago People from Potomac, Maryland Shriver family American venture capitalists Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Yale Law School alumni Yale College alumni Television producers from Illinois Record producers from California