Memoirs

David Rockefeller was born in 1915, the youngest child of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., one of the richest men in the United States, and the great patron of modern art Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. He graduated from Harvard College in the depths of the Depression, when the capitalist order, which his grandfather had helped to create, was under relentless attack. He studied at the London School of Economics and the University of Chicago, where he earned a Ph.D.

He worked briefly for New York City’s flamboyant mayor Fiorello La Guardia before enlisting in the U.S. Army in 1942. His service as an intelligence officer in North Africa and France brought him into contact with many of the individuals who would soon dominate European politics and gave him a unique perspective on the events and personalities that eventuated in the “twilight struggle” of the Cold War.

Rockefeller joined the Chase bank in 1946 as an assistant manager in the Foreign Department and rose through the ranks to become chairman of the board and chief executive officer. During that time, he struggled constantly to modernize and internationalize the bank’s operations, often against a conservative and risk-averse corporate culture.

During his eighty-seven years, David Rockefeller has:

• come to know world leaders ranging from Zhou Enlai to Mikhail Gorbachev, Anwar Sadat to Ariel Sharon, General Augusto Pinochet to Saddam Hussein
•worked with every U.S. president since Dwight Eisenhower, at times serving as an unofficial emissary on high-level missions
•traveled to more than one hundred countries, logging approximately five million miles while circling the globe dozens of times

Throughout his life David Rockefeller has been passionately interested in the welfare of the world around him, particularly in the city of New York. His involvement with Rockefeller Center, the Museum of Modern Art, the Rockefeller University, the redevelopment of the Wall Street area and the building of the World Trade Center, and many other projects is revealed in these memoirs.

It’s almost inconceivable that one man’s life could encompass so many things. But David Rockefeller’s life has, and he tells the world all about it in this candid and highly informative book. This is the first time a Rockefeller has ever told his own story.

As a financier, a philanthropist, and the ultimate ambassador without portfolio, David Rockefeller, scion of one of history’s most fabled families, has experienced a life that is unique in every aspect. This, in his own words, is the story of that remarkable life.

David Rockefeller was chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the Chase bank for many years. He has since retired and currently sits on many project and charity boards. He lives in New York City.