Rankin M. Smith Sr. (October 29, 1924 – October 26, 1997) was an American businessman and
philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
. A longtime resident of
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, Smith was very active in the Atlanta community. Smith served as president of the Life Insurance Company of Georgia from 1970 to 1976. Smith was also the founding owner of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL)'s
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...
.
Personal life
Smith was born October 29, 1924, in Atlanta, Georgia. The hospital where he was born later became part of
Atlanta Stadium. He attended
North Fulton High School.
Following high school, he spent one year at
Emory University
Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...
, then transferred to the
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...
.
While at the University of Georgia he was a member of
Chi Phi
Chi Phi () is considered by some as the oldest American men's college social fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The earliest of these organizations was forme ...
fraternity. Following graduation he began working as an executive at Life Insurance Company of Georgia. He ascended to the position of president and
chairman of the board
The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...
in 1970. He stepped down from the board in 1976 due to his "other business interests", but reportedly he was pushed out due to his problem with alcohol. He retired in 1978. Smith was married twice. First, to the former Miriam "MeMe" Wellman (1945–1974) with whom he fathered five children: Rankin, Carroll, Dorothy Ann, Taylor and Karen. These five were the genesis behind the corporate name of the Atlanta Falcons Football Club, The Five Smiths, Inc. In 1976, he married Charlotte Topping, the widow of former
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
owner
Dan Topping. He died on October 26, 1997, from complications resulting from
heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood.
Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...
.
Purchase of the Atlanta Falcons
In 1965, the unexpectedly successful
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...
wanted to expand to Atlanta. Smith, then an executive vice president at th
Life Insurance Company of Georgia was awarded an AFL franchise, but reneged on his agreement when the older National Football League offered him a franchise. He paid $8.5 million on June 30, 1965, for an NFL team based in Atlanta.
Smith secured exclusive rights to
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium
Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, often referred to as Fulton County Stadium and originally named Atlanta Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The stadium was home of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseb ...
, where the Falcons began play in 1966 and played there for 26 seasons.
Smith was instrumental in the construction of the Falcons' next stadium, the
Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome was a Stadium#Types, domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown Atlanta, downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of th ...
, threatening to move the Falcons elsewhere if a new stadium was not built.
When Smith backed out from the AFL agreement, the AFL franchise was then awarded to
Miami
Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
, which would start play as the Dolphins in 1966. He named his son Rankin Smith Jr team president, where he served from 1977 to 1988.
Smith continued to manage day-to-day operations of the team until 1989, when he turned control of the team over to his son Taylor Smith (who started as a team ballboy as a kid before moving on to work at the marketing and public relations departments) although the elder Smith apparently still had a day in decisions due to the management structure being a committee by the late 1980s. In his span as full-time owner, Rankin went 129-218-5 as an owner with three playoff appearances in 24 seasons.
Months before he died, his son convinced him to hire
Dan Reeves
Daniel Edward Reeves (January 19, 1944 – January 1, 2022) was an American professional football running back and coach in the National Football League (NFL). During his 38 years in the NFL, Reeves participated in nine Super Bowls, the third ...
as head coach and let him have control of the personnel; twenty years prior, Smith displayed reluctance in ceding player control when inquiring about hiring Reeves. Two years later, the Falcons reached
Super Bowl XXXIII
Super Bowl XXXIII was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion and defending Super Bowl XXXII champion 1998 Denver Broncos season, Denver Broncos and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion ...
.
The team was later sold to
Arthur M. Blank in 2002 for $545 million.
On
Interstate 985
Interstate 985 (I-985) is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in Northeast Georgia. It links the Atlanta metropolitan area to the city of Gainesville, Georgia, Gainesville via Suwanee, Georgia, Suwanee. I-985 is also known as the Sidney Lanie ...
in the northern suburbs of
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, Exit 12, for Spout Springs Road, leads to the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...
training complex in
Flowery Branch and is named in Smith's honor.
Philanthropy
Smith was extremely generous and made significant donations to causes in and around Atlanta, a tradition his estate continued after his death. He was a major contributor to the
Fernbank Museum of Natural History. In addition to making individual contributions, he led a fundraising drive which raised $43 million
for the museum.
The Museum's
IMAX theater
IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating, with the ...
is named for Smith.
In 1985 Smith founded the Atlanta Falcons Youth Foundation. It provides grants to non-profit organizations across Georgia, focusing on programs which benefit children.
Following his death, three of Smith's children (Rankin Smith Jr., Dorothy Smith Knox, and Taylor Smith) donated $3.5 million to the University of Georgia Athletic Association in his memory. The donation was a major component of the University's “Investing in Champions” initiative. In recognition of the donation the university named the major building built under the program, a student-athlete academic center, after Smith.
References
Further reading
James Quick and Rodney D. Fort, ''Paydirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports'' (Princeton University Press, 1992), , p. 409.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Rankin M. Sr.
1925 births
1997 deaths
Atlanta Falcons owners
Emory University alumni
University of Georgia alumni
Businesspeople from Atlanta
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American philanthropists
Philanthropists from Georgia (U.S. state)