Marvin Davis

For the Canadian football player, seeMarvin Davis (Canadian football).

Marvin Davis
Born	(1925-08-31)August 31, 1925 Newark, New Jersey,U.S.
Died	September 25, 2004(2004-09-25)(aged 79) Beverly Hills, California,U.S.
Alma mater	New York University(B.S.)
Occupation	Businessman
Known for	Chairman of Davis Petroleum, film mogul
Spouse	Barbara Levine ​ (m.1951)​
Children	5; includingJohn
Relatives	Jason Davis(grandson)

Marvin H. Davis(August 31, 1925 – September 25, 2004) was an American industrialist. He made his fortunes as the chair of Davis Petroleum and at one time owned20th Century Fox,thePebble Beach Corporation,theBeverly Hills Hotel,and theAspen Skiing Company.

Early life and education

Marvin Davis was raised in a Jewish family,the son of Jack Davis and Jean Spitzer.He had one younger sister, Joan (born 1929).

His father came to the United States from London as a teenager in 1917 and later joined theBritish Navyafter reportedly applying for a college scholarship but being denied it because he was Jewish.Jack Davis became a successfulfashion buyerfor New York department stores. He went on to found Jay Day Dress Co., a well-priced line of women's dresses that achieved great success, selling 200,000 dresses per-month to stores across the nation.In 1939 he partnered withRay Ryan,who owned the Ryan Oil Company, and they started the Davis Oil Company.

Marvin graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering fromNew York Universityin 1947.

Petroleum business

A blank Davis Oil Company's stock certificate

He joined his father in the oil exploration business and was later nicknamed "Mr. Wildcatter." The Davis Oil Company drilled for oil and gas in the West beginning in the 1940s and was incorporated in 1986 as Davis Petroleum, headquartered inDenver,Colorado. In 1960s-1980s, it became a leading independent oil and gas producer in the United States,focusing on drilling in Wyoming, where the company owned a 150-mile pipeline.

Marvin Davis's son Gregg Davis took over as president of Davis Petroleum and Davis Offshore in 1997.

Davis senior's partner Ray Ryan was a pioneer of the oil deal known as the "third for a quarter," where investors in a wildcat oil well would each buy one-quarter of the well's production for a third of the cost of drilling the well, leaving all costs paid and Davis and Ryan owners of one-quarter of the well.

Marvin Davis developed the oil business, and also became a major real estate developer in Denver, acquiring a shopping center and office complex.

Davis offered to purchase theOakland AthleticsfromCharlie Finleyfor $12 million on December 12, 1977, with the intention of moving the franchise to Denver. TheOakland–Alameda County Coliseum Authorityfiled alawsuitto block the sale because Finley had ten years remaining on aleasethat began with the transfer of the ballclub's operations from Kansas City for the1968 season.Davis ended negotiations on January 23, 1978, and the Athletics remained inOaklandunder Finley's continued ownership.

In 1981, Davis sold most of his oil holdings for $600 million to the Canadian company Hiram Walker-Consumers Home, Ltd.The United States Justice Department accused one of his Davis' companies of violating federal oil-pricing policies. The case was settled in 1981, with Davis paying a $20,000 fine. Business partners accused him in civil lawsuits of inflating the results of his oil wells.

20th Century Fox and later career

In 1981, Davis acquired20th Century Foxfor $722 million with financierMarc Rich.Fox's assets includedPebble Beach Golf Links,theAspen Skiing Company,and aCentury Cityproperty upon which he built and twice soldFox Plaza,which was made famous as "Nakatomi Plaza" in the 1988 action filmDie Hard.While Davis was head of 20th Century Fox, PresidentRonald Reaganand his wife,Nancy,complained to him about excessive sexuality in films. Reagan suggested to Davis that he produce films that implied, rather than showed, sex, in the style of directorErnst Lubitsch.In 1984 Davis appointedBarry Diller,formerly chairman and chief executive officer ofParamount Pictures,to the chairman and CEO role at 20th Century Fox. Diller asked Davis for complete control, with Davis promising to provide financing for the studio. Fox's financial situation was precarious, with the company owing $600 million.Banks would not provide any extension to the loan, and Diller pressed Davis for the new equity he had promised to put into Fox. Diller claims that Davis stalled and suggested that Diller callMichael Milkenfor a $250 millionjunk-bondloan, which would have been Diller's, not Davis', responsibility.

By 1985, Rich was in Switzerland during an indictment that was filed against him by the United States due to his violation of sanctions against his commodity trades withIran.Marc Rich had arranged with Davis for Davis to buy out his interest in 20th Century Fox for $116 million.Davis sold this interest toRupert Murdochfor $250 million in March 1984. Davis later backed out of a deal with Murdoch to purchaseJohn Kluge's Metromedia television stations, which would form what is now theFox network.Murdoch went alone and bought the studios, and later bought out Davis remaining stake in 20th Century Fox for $325 million.Davis sold Pebble Beach to Japanese businessman Minoru Isutani for $841 million in 1990. Winning a bidding war against the Sultan of Brunei,Hassanal Bolkiah,Davis bought theBeverly Hills Hotelfor $135 million in 1986. Davis later sold the hotel to the sultan for a $65 million profit.

In 1999, Davis attempted to build astadium in Los Angelesto lure theNational Football Leagueto award the city an expansion franchise during a 20-year span (1995-2015) whenthe NFL was absent from Los Angeles.The expansion team ultimately went toHoustonand became theHouston Texans,who began play in2002.

In later years, Davis was linked to takeover targets includingNorthwest Airlines,US Airways,CBS,NBCandT. Boone Pickens' Mesa.A proponent ofgreenmail,the threatening of takeover bids that never come to pass, Davis said "All you have to do is look at the pretty girl and everyone thinks you're sleeping with her. You don't have to put up any money". In 2002 a deal that was structured by Ramy El-Batrawi, Davis made an unsolicited $15 billion bid for the entertainment assets ofVivendi.

TheDenver BroncosNational Football League team was targeted by failed takeover bids from Davis.

Philanthropy and political donations

Davis was a long-time philanthropist, especially for medical research. A research building atCedars-Sinai Medical Centerin Los Angeles is named for him. The Davis's daughter Dana is a diabetic, and they founded the Children's Diabetes Foundation which hosts the biannual Carousel of Hope ball to raise money forjuvenile diabetes. Davis and his wife were for many years major donors and fundraisers for theDemocratic Party.When PresidentBill Clintonfailed to appear personally at the Carousel of Hope ball and instead sent a videotaped message, Barbara Davis told a reporter: "There are 25 people in our family...I told the White House person," You are now talking to 25 new Republicans "".

Personal life

Marvin Davis was married for 53 years to Barbara Levine. They had five children and as of November 2005, fourteen grandchildren:

• Dana Davis, aType 1 diabetic,is an active philanthropist with a focus on diabetes. She began her career as an elementary school teacher but was forced to retire due to diabetes-related foot problems which required eight separate surgeries. Unhappy with the stylishly poor selection of shoes available for people with foot problems, she developed her own line of footwear, Dana Davis Shoes, which meshed the required comfort levels with high fashion. She is now the executive director of the Children's Diabetes Foundation.
• Gregg Davis was the President of Davis Petroleum Corp., Davis Petroleum Pipeline, and Davis Offshore, the family's former oil and gas companies.He is the former husband of American actressKim Richards.Davis and Richards had two children together: daughter Whitney and son Chad.
• Patricia Ann Davis Raynes married New York real estate developer Martin Raynes in a Jewish ceremony in 1983.In 2005, Patricia sued her mother and four siblings alleging that they "looted" a trust fund set up by her paternal grandfather, Jack, who created the original Davis Oil Co. that was the foundation of the family's wealth.
• John Davis(born 1954) is an American film producer and the founder ofDavis Entertainment.
• Nancy Davis Rickel, diagnosed withMultiple sclerosis,is an active supporter of charities dedicated to its cure.She has been married twice. Her first husband wasTurkish Americanwine grower, Nebil Zarif.They had three children: Brandon Davis, Alexander Davis and actorJason Davis.Her second husband is entrepreneur Ken Rickel.They have twin daughters: Isabella and Mariella.She is also the godmother ofNicole Richie.

FriendAaron Spellingloosely based the Carrington family of his TV seriesDynastyon the Davises, even filming an episode at their Colorado home.

In 1984, the Davises purchasedThe Knoll,a 45,000-square-foot house in Beverly Hills fromKenny Rogers,where they hosted lavish Christmas parties.

In 1993, Davis and his wife were robbed of $10 million of jewels and $50,000 cash by masked gunmen while on holiday in the south of France.

Davis was identified with his towering stature, measuring 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) tall. He was known for his large appetite, with Fox executiveAlan Hirschfieldsaying that Davis "was the poster boy for everything you shouldn't eat"; he weighed over 300 pounds (140 kg) for much of his adult life, though he lost about 130 pounds (59 kg) as his health failed in his final years.

Death and aftermath

In Davis's last decade, he experienced a series of ailments, includingdiabetes,heart disease,a spinal tumor,pneumonia,andsepsis,and he died at The Knoll on September 25, 2004, at the age of 79.He was interred in theWestwood Village Memorial Park Cemeteryin Los Angeles.

Family disputes over estate

Davis' eldest daughter, Patricia Davis Raynes, sued her four siblings, her mother, and several of the family's advisers, alleging that they had all helped her father to systematically steal her trust fund before his death.Her lawsuit alleged that Marvin had entrapped and beaten Patricia in an attempt to get her to sign documents giving him control over her finances.Patricia Davis later settled with all 14 parties named in her complaint, and the case was closed in January 2008. By the conclusion of Patricia Davis' case, sister Nancy Davis had taken her brother Gregg to court over the sale of Davis Petroleum, in March 2006.

Nancy Davis alleged that her brother and his partners vastly undervalued the company and thereby denied her (and her mother and siblings) of as much as $50 million in proceeds.Lawyers for Gregg Davis deny the allegations. The Texas bankruptcy court that had originally approved the deal to sell Davis Petroleum ruled in favor of Gregg and his partners, then a district-court judge dismissed Nancy's appeal. As of 2009 the case had bounced back to the bankruptcy court.