Founders, CEOs, and entrepreneurs.
Madam C. J. Walker, orphaned at seven and born to formerly enslaved parents, built a hair care and cosmetics company for Black women and became recognized as America's first self-made woman millionaire.
Milton Hershey left school after fourth grade, learned candy-making as a teenager and made milk chocolate an affordable staple with the Hershey bar in 1900, building the company town of Hershey, Pennsylvania.
J.P. Morgan financed the creation of U.S. Steel, General Electric and International Harvester and, during the Panic of 1907, organized the coalition of financiers that saved the US monetary system.
John D. Rockefeller founded Standard Oil in 1870 and by 1900 controlled about 90 percent of US oil production, until the Supreme Court broke the company into 34 entities in 1911.
Mathematician Jim Simons founded Renaissance Technologies and its Medallion Fund, using quantitative models to become known as the most successful hedge fund manager of all time.
George Soros founded the Quantum Fund, earned a $1 billion profit betting against the pound on Black Wednesday in 1992 and has donated more than $32 billion to the Open Society Foundations.
Bill Ackman founded Gotham Partners in 1992 and later Pershing Square Capital Management, becoming one of the best-known activist investors on Wall Street.
Henry Kravis co-founded Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and pioneered the leveraged buyout, including the RJR Nabisco deal chronicled in Barbarians at the Gate.
Emeril Lagasse turned down a conservatory percussion scholarship for culinary school and built a New Orleans restaurant, media and product business earning about $150 million a year by 2005.
Marcus Lemonis was abandoned at an orphanage in Beirut days after birth, was adopted in Miami and mentored by Lee Iacocca, and now co-owns Camping World and stars in CNBC's The Profit.
Robert F. Smith won a Bell Labs internship by calling every Monday for five months, then founded Vista Equity Partners. In 2020 he settled a $139 million tax fraud case.
Daniel Lubetzky built PeaceWorks around Middle East cooperation, then launched KIND Snacks in 2003, which became the fastest-growing US snack company in 2015 before Mars agreed to acquire it in 2020.
