HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Haim Saban (; ; born October 15, 1944) is an Israeli and American media proprietor, investor, musical composer and producer of records, film, and television. A businessman with interests in financial services, entertainment, and media, and an estimated net worth of $2.8 billion, he is ranked by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' as the 232nd richest person in America. Saban is the founder of
Saban Entertainment BVS Entertainment, Inc., previously known as Saban Productions, Saban Entertainment and Saban International, is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. Founded on April 24, 1980, as a music production company by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy, it ...
, producer and distributor of children's television programs in the US such as ''
Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...
.'' He headed up consortiums which purchased the broadcasters ProSiebenSat.1 Media and
Univision Communications TelevisaUnivision (formerly known as Univision Communications) is a Mexican-American mass media, media company headquartered in Miami and Mexico City that owns American Spanish language broadcast network Univision and free-to-air channels in Mex ...
. He is a major donor to the United States Democratic Party and active in pro-Israel political efforts in the United States. In March 2017, Saban was honored with the 2,605th star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
for his achievements in television.


Early and personal life

Haim Saban was born in
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
, Egypt, to an Egyptian-Jewish family. In 1956, the Saban family immigrated to Israel, along with most of the Egyptian Jewish community. Saban was sent to a
Youth Aliyah Youth Aliyah (Hebrew: עלית הנוער, ''Aliyat Hano'ar'', German: Jugend-Alijah, Youth Immigration) is a Jewish organization that rescued thousands of Jewish children from the Nazis during the Third Reich. Youth Aliyah arranged for their r ...
boarding school. Expelled for being a troublemaker, he enrolled in a night high school where the principal told him: "You're not cut out for academic studies; you're cut out for making money." He served as a soldier in the
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
. Saban is married to Cheryl Lynn (Flor) Saban, with whom he has two children. He also has two stepchildren, Tifanie and Heidi Lenhart, an actress. He resides in
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
, California."Haim Saban"
''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
''. Retrieved May 31, 2014


Music career

Saban started his music career in 1966 as a
bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
player and manager with the
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band The Lions of Judah (''Ha'arayot''), which was named after the
Lion of Judah The Lion of Judah (, ) is a Jewish national and cultural symbol, traditionally regarded as the symbol of the tribe of Judah. The association between the Judahites and the lion can first be found in the blessing given by Jacob to his fourth son ...
in Jewish Scripture. Saban did not know how to play the bass but conditioned his work booking the band's performances on becoming their bassist. In 1969, Dave Watts from the British band
The Tornados The Tornados were an English instrumental rock group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hits in their own right, including ...
joined The Lions. That year, the band traveled to England, performed in night clubs in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and was signed up by
Polydor Records Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...
. In July 1969, the band appeared on the
BBC TV BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1 January 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios ...
programme '' Colour Me Pop''. The Lions recorded a single, "Our Love's A Growing Thing", but it was not released in the UK due to financial difficulties. The band returned to Israel and Saban focused on being a music promoter. In Israel, Saban worked as a tour promoter but found himself deep in debt due to financial losses during the
Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...
. He discovered a young Noam Kaniel and took him to Paris, where Saban produced a string of Kaniel's singles and albums. In 1978, Kaniel recorded the theme for ''Goldorak'', the French-dubbed version of UFO Robot Grendizer, the first
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
to be telecast in France. This led to Saban's involvement in American cartoon music. After moving in 1983 to the United States, Haim Saban and partner Shuki Levy became known for
soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
compositions for children's television programs of the 1980s. Although Levy and Saban composed for their own properties (such as '' Kidd Video'' and ''
Maple Town ''Maple Town'', also known as , is a 1986 Japanese anime series created by Chifude Asakura and directed by Junichi Sato. The series, produced by Toei Animation, Asatsu and Asahi Broadcasting Corporation, consists of 52 half-hour episodes, wh ...
''), they scored for other production companies as well (such as ''
Inspector Gadget ''Inspector Gadget'' is a media franchise that began in 1983 with the DIC Entertainment animated television series '' Inspector Gadget''. Since the original series, there have been many spin-offs based on the show, including additional animated ...
'', ''
The Mysterious Cities of Gold , known outside of Japan as the first season of ''The Mysterious Cities of Gold'' ( French: ''Les Mystérieuses Cités d'Or''), is an animated series which was produced by MK, NHK, DiC Audiovisuel, CLT and animated by Studio Pierrot. Th ...
'', '' M.A.S.K.'', ''
Dinosaucers ''Dinosaucers'' is a 1987 animated television series co-produced in the United States and Canada; developed and produced by DIC Animation City in association with Lightyear Entertainment and Coca-Cola Telecommunications. The show was created b ...
'', ''
Dragon Quest previously published as ''Dragon Warrior'' in North America until 2005, is a series of role-playing video games created by Japanese game designer Yuji Horii (Armor Project), character designer Akira Toriyama (Bird Studio), and composer Koi ...
'', ''
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe ''He-Man and the Masters of the Universe'' (often referred to simply as ''He-Man'') is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's toy line ''Masters of the Universe''. The show was one of the most popular an ...
'', '' She-Ra: Princess of Power'', and ''
Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors ''Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors'' (French: ''Jayce et les Conquérants de la Lumière'') is an animated show which was first broadcast on TF1 on September 9, 1985, on the block ''Salut les p'tits loups!'', and eventually on September 16 in the ...
''). In 1998, ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' reported that he did not actually compose all the music (totalling 3,700 works in 2008) he is credited for; ten composers threatened to sue and Saban settled out of court.


Business career


Saban Entertainment

He then became a television producer, founding
Saban Entertainment BVS Entertainment, Inc., previously known as Saban Productions, Saban Entertainment and Saban International, is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. Founded on April 24, 1980, as a music production company by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy, it ...
in 1988. In the 1990s, Saban's company became known for the production of ''
Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...
'', '' Masked Rider'', '' VR Troopers'', and '' Big Bad Beetleborgs'', which were Western adaptations of Japanese
tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction film, science fiction, War fi ...
shows.


Fox Family

In 1996,
News Corporation The original incarnation of News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp. and also variously known as News Corporation Limited) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media corporation founded and controlled by media mogul Ru ...
's Fox Children's Network and Haim Saban's
Saban Entertainment BVS Entertainment, Inc., previously known as Saban Productions, Saban Entertainment and Saban International, is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. Founded on April 24, 1980, as a music production company by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy, it ...
merged to form Fox Kids Worldwide. Also in that year, the company purchased the C&D library from
Jean Chalopin Jean Chalopin (born 31 May 1950) is a French businessman, banker and former television producer. In 1971, he founded the production company DIC Entertainment, which specialized in children-oriented television and film productions. Through the ...
. With the growing shift in children's television from over-the-air
programming block Block programming (also known as a strand in British broadcasting) is the arrangement of programs on radio or television so that those of a particular genre, theme, or target audience are united. Overview Block programming involves scheduling a ...
s to cable channels such as
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (CN) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the Cartoon Network, Inc., a sub-division of the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. It launched on ...
and
Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...
, the combined entity (half-owned by Haim Saban himself) sought to launch a competitor that would carry programming from the popular
Fox Kids Fox Kids (originally known as Fox Children's Network and later as the Fox Kids Network; stylized in all caps) was an American children's programming block and branding for a slate of international children's television channels. Originally a j ...
lineup. Eying The Family Channel, News Corp. made an offer to purchase IFE through the Fox Kids Worldwide division in 1997. On July 23, 2001, Saban announced that he and News Corporation would sell Fox Family Worldwide Inc for $5.3 billion to
The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...
. and on October 24, 2001, the sale was completed and the network was renamed
ABC Family American cable television, cable and satellite television network Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through four different owners and six different name changes dur ...
. Saban profited about $1.6 billion from this sale.


ProSiebenSat.1

In August 2003, Saban led a consortium, which acquired a controlling stake in the straggling ProSiebenSat.1 Media group from the Kirch Media Group, the then-bankrupt German media conglomerate. ProSiebenSat.1, is Germany's largest commercial television broadcasting company, which owns five German TV channels, including
ProSieben ProSieben (, ''sieben'' is German for "seven"; often stylized as Pro7) is a German free-to-air television network owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media. It was launched on 1 January 1989. It is Germany's second-largest privately owned television company ...
and SAT.1, two of the top three stations in Germany. Collectively, ProSiebenSat.1's channels represented approximately 45% of the German TV advertising market at the time. Saban's ProSiebenSat.1 acquisition was the first time a foreigner took control of a significant German Media company. Saban oversaw a successful business turnaround of ProSiebenSat.1, recruiting former business rivals, ex-
BSkyB Sky UK Limited (formerly British Sky Broadcasting Limited (BSkyB)), trading as Sky, is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television, broadband internet, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers ...
chief executive Tony Ball and former BBC Director-General
Greg Dyke Gregory Dyke (born 20 May 1947) is a British media executive, football administrator, journalist and broadcaster. Since the 1960s, Dyke has had a long career in the UK in print and then broadcast journalism. He is credited with introducing " t ...
to the board of the company. In March 2007, Saban Capital Group and the consortium sold its controlling interest in ProSiebenSat.1 to KKR and
Permira Permira Holdings Limited is a British global investment firm specialised in buyouts, growth funds, equity funds, and credit funds. Founded in 1985 as part of Schroders, it became independent in 1996. Operating as Permira since 2001, the company ...
, for 22.40 euros a share after originally paying 7.5 euros per share in 2003.


Univision

On June 27, 2006,
Saban Capital Group Saban Capital Group LLC is an American investment company based in Los Angeles, California focused on media, entertainment and communications. Formed in 2001 by Haim Saban, Saban Capital Group owns Saban Films, and co-owns Celestial Tiger Ente ...
led a group of investors bidding for
Univision Communications TelevisaUnivision (formerly known as Univision Communications) is a Mexican-American mass media, media company headquartered in Miami and Mexico City that owns American Spanish language broadcast network Univision and free-to-air channels in Mex ...
, the largest Spanish-language media company in the United States. Other investors in the Saban-led group were
Texas Pacific Group TPG Inc., previously known as Texas Pacific Group and TPG Capital, is an American private equity firm based in Fort Worth, Texas. TPG manages investment funds in growth capital, venture capital, public equity, and debt investments. The firm in ...
of
Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...
and
Thomas H. Lee Partners Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. is an American private equity firm headquartered in Boston. The firm focuses on investing in middle market growth companies across various sectors, including financial technology, services, healthcare, technology, ...
. The group was successful in acquiring
Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television, free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the L ...
with a bid valued at $13.7 billion (USD), but sold to private equity firm Searchlight Capital Partners and ex-Viacom finance head Wade Davis in 2020.


Saban Music Group

In 2019, Saban announced that he had formed the Saban Music Group backed by $500 million of his own capital. The company will focus on global artists, particular Latin American, tapping new artists and acquiring existing businesses.


Views and opinions

Saban, a long-time supporter and donor of many Jewish and pro-Israel causes, has stated his main goal in multiple interviews: "I'm a one-issue guy, and my issue is Israel." Saban became involved in politics in the mid-1990s when he felt that support for Israel was slipping in the United States. He says his views have shifted over the years: Saban has been a consistent donor to the United States Democratic Party according to his mandatory
Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign ...
filings. '' Mother Jones'', in an analysis of the major donors to the campaigns of 1998 election cycle, ranked Saban 155th among individual donors. Amy Paris noted that Saban's Clinton-era "generosity did not go unrewarded. During the
Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...
, the entertainment executive served on the President's Export Council, advising the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
on trade issues." The ''New York Times'' reported that Haim and his wife "slept in the White House several times during President Clinton's two terms." Saban remains close friends with the former president. Clinton described Saban as a "very good friend and supporter." Saban contributed between $5 million to $10 million to the William J. Clinton Foundation. During the 2000 presidential election, Saban increased his rank to 5th among individual donors with a combined contribution of $1,250,500.
Matthew Yglesias Matthew Yglesias (; born May 18, 1981) is an American blogger and journalist who writes about economics and politics. Yglesias has written columns and articles for publications such as ''The American Prospect'', ''The Atlantic'', and ''Slate''. I ...
wrote that "Saban was the largest overall contributor to the
Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...
during the 2001–2002 cycle." Saban's donations during that 2001–2002 period exceeded $10 million, the largest donation the DNC has received from a single source up to that time. In September 2004, Hillary Clinton described Saban as a very good friend, supporter and adviser: "I am grateful for his commitment to Israel, to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East and to my foundation's work, particularly on reconciliation issues." In May 2007, Haim publicly declared his support for Clinton in 2008 presidential election. In June 2007, Saban and
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...
co-hosted a Hillary Clinton fundraiser at the house of
Peter Chernin Peter Chernin (born May 29, 1951) is an American film and television producer, businessman and investor. He is the chairman and CEO of The Chernin Group (TCG), which he founded in 2010. TCG manages, operates and invests in businesses in the media ...
, the president of
News Corporation The original incarnation of News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp. and also variously known as News Corporation Limited) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media corporation founded and controlled by media mogul Ru ...
. According to the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'', the fundraiser brought in over $850,000. In March 2008, Saban was among a group of major Jewish donors to sign a letter to Democratic Party house leader
Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...
advising her not to interfere in the Democratic presidential primaries. The donors were upset by Pelosi's statement that the party '
superdelegate In American politics, a superdelegate is a delegate to a presidential nominating convention who is seated automatically. In Democratic National Conventions, superdelegates—described in formal party rules as the party leaders and electe ...
s' should heed the will of the majority in selecting a candidate." The donors, who were strong supporters of the DCCC, implied that Pelosi could lose their financial support in upcoming congressional elections. In May 2008, it was reported that Haim Saban had offered $1 million to the
Young Democrats of America The Young Democrats of America (YDA) is the youth wing of the Democratic Party of the United States. YDA operates as a separate organization from the Democratic National Committee; following the passage of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, i ...
and urged the endorsement of Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee for president." Saban has also made donations to members of the Republican Party including a 2003 contribution to
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
's 2004 re-election campaign. Saban supported Hillary Clinton for President of the United States in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Between June 2015 and June 2016, he and his wife donated US$7 million to Priorities USA, a pro-Clinton Super PAC. Meanwhile, Saban has called Republican candidate
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
"a danger to America". Saban has said that
Keith Ellison Keith Maurice Ellison (born August 4, 1963) is an American politician and lawyer serving since 2019 as the 30th attorney general of Minnesota. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Ellison was the U.S. representative for fr ...
, who ran for the leadership of the DNC, "is clearly an anti-Semite and anti-Israel individual." Saban also called Sen.
Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...
(I-VT) "an anti-Israel person." In 2006, Saban discussed his views on the Middle East and Persian Gulf region in an interview with ''
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
''. Commenting on Iran, he said: "When I see Ahmadinejad, I see Hitler. They speak the same language. His motivation is also clear: the return of the Mahdi is a supreme goal. And for a religious person of deep self-persuasion, that supreme goal is worth the liquidation of five and a half million Jews. We cannot allow ourselves that. Nuclear weapons in the hands of a religious leadership that is convinced that the annihilation of Israel will bring about the emergence of a new Muslim caliphate? Israel cannot allow that. This is no game. It's truly an existential danger." If Obama strikes a "bad deal" with Iran that would put Israel at risk, "I would bomb the living daylights out of these sons of bitches," Saban said at a meeting of the Israeli American Council. In 2005, Saban spent $100,000 to oppose California's 2005 Proposition 77 redistricting reform. Saban contributed $100,000 to pass California's 2008 redistricting reform, Proposition 11, which created a
Citizens Redistricting Commission The California Citizens Redistricting Commission is the redistricting commission for the California, State of California responsible for determining the boundaries of districts for the California State Senate, State Senate, California State Asse ...
to redraw California's state political boundaries, but not U.S. Congressional districts. Saban contributed $2,000,000 to support Proposition 27, California's proposed 2010 repeal of Proposition 11, the 2008 redistricting reform – the same reform that Haim Saban previously supported with a $100,000 contribution. He joined list of other well-connected, big-money donors to the Democratic Party in supporting Proposition 27. In 2020, Saban collaborated with UAE Ambassador to the United States,
Yousef Al Otaiba Yousef Al Otaiba () is the current United Arab Emirates ambassador to the United States and Minister of state. Previously Al Otaiba served as non-resident ambassador to Mexico. His father is Petroleum magnate Mana Al Otaiba, who served as the pre ...
, on a June 12 op-ed addressed to the Israeli public in an effort to halt Israel's planned annexation of parts of the West Bank and create a unified front between the UAE and Israel against the opposing forces of Iran. Al Otaiba credited Saban with advising him where his op-ed should be placed, when it should be placed and that it needed to be translated in Hebrew. The efforts were purported to have helped pave the way to the August 2020 signing of the Abraham Accords, brokered by United States President, Donald Trump, and normalizing ties between Israel and UAE.


Philanthropy

In 2007, Saban donated $14 million to complete the children's hospital at Soroka Medical Center.


Other donations


Saban Center for Middle East Policy

In 2002 Saban provided an initial grant of US$13 million and a pledge of additional funds to create the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, a foreign policy think tank based in Washington, D.C. The Saban Center is part of the larger
Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...
think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...
. The ''Saban Center'' aims to provide policy makers in government with information and analysis regarding America's foreign policy in the Middle East. Saban recruited Martin Indyk to direct the center.


Saban National Political Leadership Training Seminar

Saban sponsors the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee's ''Saban National Political Leadership Training Seminar'', a series of semiannual seminars in Washington to provide college student activists for three days of intensive pro-Israel advocacy training.Peace Now
The seminars provide up to 300 students from a hundred campuses with training in order to "prepare for challenges and opportunities on their campuses and he studentsleft Washington prepared to mobilize for legislative and electoral impact during the next school year and into campaign '08."AIPAC
/ref> Among the prominent figures to have addressed the seminars are Senator
Evan Bayh Birch Evans "Evan" Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American politician who served as the List of governors of Indiana, 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997 and as a United States Senate, United States senator representing Indi ...
and Congressman
Mark Kirk Mark Steven Kirk (born September 15, 1959) is an American retired politician and attorney who served as a United States senator from Illinois from 2010 to 2017, and as the United States representative for Illinois's 10th congressional district f ...
and academics David Makovsky, Robert Satloff and
Dennis Ross Dennis B. Ross (born November 26, 1948) is an American diplomat and author. He served as the Director of Policy Planning in the State Department under President George H. W. Bush, the special Middle East coordinator under President Bill Clinton ...
.


References


Further reading

* Sorkin, Andrew.
Schlepping to Moguldom.
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
.'' September 5, 2004. * Shavit, Ari.
You made it big, you jerk!.
''
Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...
.'' September 12, 2006. * Wallace, Amy
Haim Saban, Power Ranger
" ''Portfolio Magazine.'' August 13, 2008. * Daunt, Tina

''Los Angeles Times.'' April 22, 2009. * Bruck, Connie
The Influencer: An entertainment mogul sets his sights on foreign policy.
''The New Yorker.'' May 10, 2010.


External links



at
Saban Capital Group Saban Capital Group LLC is an American investment company based in Los Angeles, California focused on media, entertainment and communications. Formed in 2001 by Haim Saban, Saban Capital Group owns Saban Films, and co-owns Celestial Tiger Ente ...
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saban, Haim 1944 births Living people 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century Mizrahi Jews 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century Mizrahi Jews American billionaires American businesspeople in the online media industry American chief executives in the mass media industry American film studio executives American financial company founders American financial businesspeople American investors American male bass guitarists American mass media owners American mass media company founders American music industry executives American music managers American music publishers (people) American people of Egyptian-Jewish descent American political fundraisers American rock bass guitarists Television producers from California American Zionists Brookings Institution people Businesspeople from Los Angeles California Democrats Egyptian emigrants to Israel Egyptian exiles Egyptian Jews Film producers from California Guitarists from Los Angeles Israeli bass guitarists Israeli billionaires Israeli emigrants to the United States Israeli expatriates in France Israeli expatriates in the United Kingdom Israeli film producers Israeli financial businesspeople Israeli investors Israeli Mizrahi Jews Israeli mass media owners Israeli philanthropists Israeli publishers (people) Israeli record producers Israeli rock guitarists Israeli songwriters Israeli television producers Jewish American musicians American philanthropists Jewish rock musicians American Mizrahi Jews People from Alexandria Mass media people from Beverly Hills, California Saban Entertainment Songwriters from California Zionism in the United States 20th-century American bass guitarists Record producers from California 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American Sephardic Jews 21st-century American Sephardic Jews Jewish American film people American television show creators