Ralph Joel Roberts (March 13, 1920June 18, 2015) was an American businessman who was the founder of

Comcast Comcast Corporation, formerly known as Comcast Holdings,Before the AT&T Broadband, AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation, not th ...

, serving as its CEO for 46 years and as its chairman emeritus until his death in 2015.

Early life and education

Roberts was born on March 13, 1920, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. His parents Robert Max Roberts (also known as Bob Roberts) and Sara Wahl were both Russian-Jewish immigrants who became wealthy in the United States through ownership of a number of pharmacies, the most notable of which was in the Biltmore Hotel. When Roberts was five the family moved to

New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...

, and then after his father died of a heart-attack, to

Germantown, Philadelphia Germantown () is an area in Northwest Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded by Palatines, Palatine, Quaker, and Mennonite families in 1683 as an independent borough (Pennsylvania), borough, it was absorbed into Philadelphia in 1854. The area, whi ...

when he was seventeen to live with his stepfather Harry Bobrow, of Bobrow Brothers Cigars. Roberts graduated from the

Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

and served a four-year tour on duty in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

.University of Pennsylvania Medicine: "About the Roberts"
. Retrieved November 25, 2013

Career

After leaving the navy, Roberts held various jobs, first selling golf clubs, then working for the Muzak Company, and later the Pioneer Suspender Company, which he eventually owned. Using the proceeds from Pioneer, he started purchasing local community antenna television systems which brought TV to people in rural areas, which were then underserved by big broadcasters. In 1963, he and his partners, Daniel Aaron and Julian A. Brodsky, paid $500,000 for a 1,200-subscriber cable TV operator in

Tupelo, Mississippi Tupelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1860, the population was 37,923 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, 7th-most populous ...

, called American Cable Systems. They incorporated in 1969 as Comcast Corporation, a name Roberts invented by combining the words communications and broadcasting. Roberts has been credited with expanding Comcast into the largest cable television company in the United States.

Accolades

Roberts served on the boards of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Brandywine River Museum, the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition, and the PENN Medicine Board of Trustees. Roberts received awards from the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, the Walter Kaitz Foundation, the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, The National Conference of Christians and Jews, the

Urban League The National Urban League (NUL), formerly known as the National League on Urban Conditions Among Negroes, is a nonpartisan historic civil rights organization based in New York City that advocates on behalf of economic and social justice for Afri ...

of Philadelphia, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Golden Plate Award of the

American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a nonprofit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest-achieving people in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet one ano ...

, and the

National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), also known as the National Television Academy until 2007, is an American professional service organization founded in 1955 for "the advancement of the arts and sciences of televisio ...

. He was awarded honorary degrees from both Holy Family College and the University of Pennsylvania, where he received their Joseph P. Wharton Award. In 1998, the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia inducted Roberts into their Hall of Fame. The Suzanne F. and Ralph J. Roberts Foundation was one of the largest contributors to the restoration of the Alfred W. Fleisher Memorial Synagogue at Eastern State Penitentiary in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

named in the honor of his father-in-law. Ralph roberts brian roberts comcast

Personal life

In 1942, Roberts married Suzanne Fleisher, who was also Jewish, an actress and playwright, and daughter of philanthropist Alfred W. Fleisher. Her name appears on the Suzanne Roberts Theatre in Philadelphia and she hosted a TV program aimed at seniors called "Seeking Solutions with Suzanne" on Comcast's CN8 network. They had five children: Catherine, Lisa, Ralph Jr. (Rob), Brian, and Douglas (who died in 2011); and eight grandchildren. Their son, Brian L. Roberts, is the current CEO of Comcast Corporation. Ralph J

Roberts made an appearance on

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

's reality series '' Cake Boss'', receiving a cake for his 90th birthday in 2010. He died on June 18, 2015, of natural causes.Ralph J. Roberts, Comcast Corporation Founder and Chairman Emeritus, dies at age 95
Comcast Corporate Statement. Retrieved June 19, 2015

References

External links

Biography
comcast.com
Profile
broadcastpioneers.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Ralph J. 1920 births 2015 deaths American technology chief executives American chairpersons of corporations American cable television company founders American philanthropists American people of Russian-Jewish descent Comcast people University of Pennsylvania alumni Wharton School alumni United States Navy sailors Businesspeople from New Rochelle, New York Businesspeople from Pennsylvania People from Cheltenham, Pennsylvania People from New Rochelle, New York Ralph J. Philanthropists from New York (state) United States Navy personnel of World War II