Paul Allen Passed Away at 65
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pb4uski
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I seem to recall hearing that he was ill... sorry to hear that he died.
Allen had Hodgkin's disease back in 1981, and he had to leave the very young Microsoft at that time. It is amazing that essentially he has not worked since then yet ended up one of the world's wealthiest people. He was well liked in Seattle.
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It was non-hodgkin's lymphoma. He announced on twitter just a few weeks ago that it had returned:
audreyh1
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NW-Bound
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It's somber to see that even billionaires like Paul Allen, and Steve Jobs earlier, could not get treatments to overcome cancer.
Paul Allen had a good life, having ER'ed so early before the age of 30. I did not know he left Microsoft that early, and due to his illness.
Paul Allen had a good life, having ER'ed so early before the age of 30. I did not know he left Microsoft that early, and due to his illness.
USGrant1962
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Exactly what I told DW tonight when I mentioned the passing of Paul Allen. Paul bought the company she worked for in the late 1980s.
urn2bfree
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Not quite.
He had HODGKIN Lymphoma (officially there is no "s") around 1980. Then in 2009 he was diagnosed with NON- Hodgkin Lymphoma, a different disease and not at all uncommon after successful treatment of Hodgkin Lymphoma. In fact, it seems the longer one survives Hodgkin Lymphoma the more often that some other form of cancer develops. In this case a NON Hodgkin Lymphoma. He died from a relapse of that Non Hodgkin Lymphoma.
Yes my mistake. Hodgkin's lymphoma first. Then non-Hodgkin's in 2009, likely related to his treatment for the first malignancy. I have never heard an oncologist use the term Hodgkin Lymphoma. I have heard them use the terms Hodgkin's disease and Hodgkin's lymphoma so although some body somewhere may have decided to call it Hodgkin lymphoma I am going to stick with Hodgkin's.
explanade
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Why was he great exactly?
kcowan
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He bought the Seahawks to prevent them from moving out of Seattle.
He was a philanthropist. He gave and helped and donated after he retired from Microsoft
NW-Bound
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Interesting that Paul Allen withdrew from Microsoft in 1982 for health reasons, shortly after the big deal with IBM, but was wise to keep his shares of the company when it was still private.
MS did not go public until 1986.
MS did not go public until 1986.
I had Hodgin lymphoma 4 years ago and my doc mentioned there is a chance that non-hodgkin lymphoma is a future possibility. One study indicates about 30% of HL survivors acquire a secondary cancer due to the initial treatment regime.
RIP Paul Allen. He appeared to enjoy his life and gave back. 65 is way too young.
RIP Paul Allen. He appeared to enjoy his life and gave back. 65 is way too young.
Major Tom
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He had a frequent shopper card at a retail store I worked at in Los Angeles. We liked that one of the wealthiest men in the world still wouldn't turn down a "Buy 10 Get 1 Free" deal.
kite_rider
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One of the few billionaires I've ever met. I was staffing a lowly trade show booth and he walked by and spoke with me for about 10 minutes regarding the technology I had on display.
From my brief meeting with him, I got the feeling that he was a very down to earth individual with a genuine interest in people and a strong curiosity about technology. He seemed to shatter the myth of the 'evil billionaire' that is often portrayed in TV shows like 'Billions'.
Fedup
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Most tech billionaires are down to earth. Years ago, you never see them with body guards.
explanade
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I don't know too much about his philanthropy but his friend Gates is the one who's made big waves in philanthropic circles.
He tried to make more money after his MS days investing in things like cable TV.
More recently, his biggest success was redeveloping the area of Seattle which became the hub for Amazon and then subsequently, other tech companies.
He tried to make more money after his MS days investing in things like cable TV.
More recently, his biggest success was redeveloping the area of Seattle which became the hub for Amazon and then subsequently, other tech companies.
Fedup
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I read he gave $2 billion to charity already.
He tried to redevelop this land a long time ago. The project was called Seattle Commons and it was rejected by voters in the '90s. If it passed, then Seattle would have its own urban park in a great location. Now it's a bunch of high rises with not much charm.
Oh well. Seattle should be grateful. Without Amazon, this area would probably still be a wasteland of industrial/mixed-use buildings, which is basically what it was for 10+ years after the Commons failed.
Here's an article I found about the Commons from 2015: https://crosscut.com/2015/12/south-lake-union-could-have-been-seattles-central-park
And an unfavorable opinion regarding Allen's contribution:
Not really objective, since if I remember correctly, he was offering to donate a sizable amount for the project. But Seattle is Seattle and for some reason, people here like the idea of our rich neighbors paying for everything.
My opinion is that he's been more than generous to Seattle. He's put a lot of his money into the community and Seattle has benefited greatly from his contributions.
explanade
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I meant just in terms of one of his more successful ventures after MS.
He didn't really innovate anything, just used massive capital to get returns.
But he's not unique in that respect, compared to other former MS insiders or for that matter other tech billionaires.
Gates has pledged most of his money to philanthropy and has gotten several other billionaires to do the same.
Nathan Myhrvold has funded the biggest patent troll operation with his MS money. I think Gates and Allen may have invested a little in Myhrvold's ventures but it's really parasitic what he's done.
Allen seems to be well-know for his ownership of the Seahawks and Trailblazers. Apparently he didn't have any children so his sister would inherit the teams as well as other assets.
But she's made it known she isn't interested in owning those teams so those teams may be in the news as prospective owners line up.
He didn't really innovate anything, just used massive capital to get returns.
But he's not unique in that respect, compared to other former MS insiders or for that matter other tech billionaires.
Gates has pledged most of his money to philanthropy and has gotten several other billionaires to do the same.
Nathan Myhrvold has funded the biggest patent troll operation with his MS money. I think Gates and Allen may have invested a little in Myhrvold's ventures but it's really parasitic what he's done.
Allen seems to be well-know for his ownership of the Seahawks and Trailblazers. Apparently he didn't have any children so his sister would inherit the teams as well as other assets.
But she's made it known she isn't interested in owning those teams so those teams may be in the news as prospective owners line up.
He also owned the biggest yacht in the world, and the first with not just one, but two helipads. Sort of a Blow That Dough poster boy.
