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Samuel Zell: Sam Zell
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Samuel Zell is the recipient of the 2007 Kellogg Award for Distinguished Leadership, presented by the Kellogg Business Leadership Club. Zell delivered an address at the award ceremony on April 11. Photo © Nathan Mandell
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Samuel Zell is about 1.65 meters tall and has a bald dome and a beard like an Amish farmer. He revels in the nickname he gave himself years ago: "the Grave Dancer."
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NEW YORK: Samuel Zell's first foray into publishing came when he was in high school in the 1950s. He would visit the magazine vendors under the elevated train tracks in Chicago and buy up copies of Playboy for 50 cents. Then he would go home to the suburbs and sell the magazines to his pals for three or four times what he paid.
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Tabbed to handle the day-to-day running of EOP, while Zell maintained the big picture as chairman of the board, was Timothy H. Callahan, who had taken over the position in October 1996 when the REIT was formed. He had headed Equity Office Holdings and Equity Office Properties, as well as previously serving as the chief financial officer for the parent corporation of the subsidiaries, Equity Group Investments. Prior to working for Zell, Callahan spent several years working for another well known real estate mogul, Edward J. DeBartolo, and another 14 years at Chemical Bank where he held a number of positions. EOP had barely completed its IPO when it initiated an aggressive acquisition strategy and acquired two Chicago properties for $462 million. A much more significant deal was landed in September 1997 when EOP acquired its largest competitor, Beacon Properties Corp., at a cost of $4 billion (including the assumption of debt). In terms of market capitalization, EOP was now the largest REIT in the country, its portfolio comprised of 233 office buildings and 55.7 million square feet of space.
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Zell was elected to the board on May 9, 2007, and will become chairman of the board upon completion of Tribune's going-private transaction, which is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of 2007. FitzSimons, as Tribune president and chief executive officer, will remain a member of the board, which is expected to consist of nine directors. The remainder of the board will include at least five independent directors and an additional director affiliated with Zell.
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Zell intended to practice law... and accepted a position with the Chicago firm of Yates Holleb and Michelson at a salary of $116 a week, with the possibility of earning more by bringing in new business. According to Zell he suffered through his first week drafting a contract, then over the weekend took advantage of real estate contacts to cobble together an apartment project in Toledo, Ohio, which he presented to the firm's partners on Monday morning. All of them were impressed enough to invest in the deal. During the first year at Yates Holleb, he earned $93,000 in commissions, compared with $7,000 in salary, for a total compensation that eclipsed the firm's senior partners. Zell stayed on until 1968, then decided to quit the practice of law and again joined forces with Lurie to pursue real estate ventures.
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