As I graduated from college the war ended (Vietnam, not the Civil War), but I still joined the service (IRS) fighting crime for five years. After becoming a CPA and finishing graduate school I was offered a job at General Cinema, since the two preferred candidates turned it down.
I was fortunate to work with Dick Smith and a bunch of great people. At the time General Cinema owned and operated theaters and drive-ins, as well as operations in Pepsi bottling, Sunkist soft drinks, radio, television, bowling, furniture, and more. Over the next 20 years we sold or divested all those businesses and acquired Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman; Harcourt Brace businesses including educational, technical and scientific publishing; an insurance company; and other small companies. During my time at General Cinema and Harcourt we did friendly and hostile tenders for public companies, spun off various businesses to shareholders, issued billions in debt including bonds with a due date 100 years out, and always had well-known investment bankers and lawyers in the office. After the sale of Harcourt in 2001, Rob, Brian, and I couldn’t live without one another so we established Castanea Partners (ask Brian, he came up with that name).
We have been fortunate that many talented people joined us over the years, sharing a common vision, culture, and sense of humor and really making Castanea what it is today. We are often reminded that if we weren’t here at the beginning we wouldn’t have been hired.
After unceremoniously graduating from Framingham South High School, I attended Bentley University and received B.S. and M.S.T. degrees. I enjoy traveling, skiing, golfing, reading, and spending time on the Cape. Most importantly, my wife Debra and I have two adult daughters in the Boston area.
