Richard Parsons, former Time Warner CEO, Citigroup chairman died at age 76

Richard D. Parsons, a longtime bank executive who took the helm of Time Warner during a turbulent time for the communications company and helped Citigroup navigate the financial crisis, died Thursday at age 76.

A prominent black businessman, Parsons also helped the NBA’s Clippers navigate a racism scandal.

Parsons was widely credited with turning around Time Warner after its botched $165 billion merger with AOL, CNN reported. With Parsons as CEO, Time Warner cut its debt by roughly half as it ushered in a new era of sustainable growth.

The New York Times said the cause of death was cancer, citing Ronald Lauder, a longtime friend of Parsons and chairman of Estee Lauder. Parsons, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, had also served on Estee Lauder’s board of directors, as well as on the board of asset management firm Lazard.

He “was more than an iconic leader in Lazard’s history — he was a testament to how wisdom, warmth and unwavering judgment could shape not just businesses, but people’s lives,” Lazard said in a statement on its website.

“When Citigroup faced its darkest hour during the financial crisis, he stepped forward as chairman despite the enormous challenges ahead and said simply, ‘You can’t desert your troops when the going gets tough,'” Lazard said.

Citigroup said in a statement: “Dick applied his legendary leadership skills during an incredibly challenging time for our company, leaving Citi better than he found it.”

In 2014, when the NBA banned Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling for life over racist comments, the basketball league installed Parsons as the Clippers’ interim CEO.

“At a time of adversity and uncertainty for the Los Angeles Clippers, Dick stepped in to provide the type of steady and reassuring leadership that defined his remarkable career in business and public service,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement Thursday.

The Times noted that Parsons was often the only black executive in a boardroom and spoke out on social issues, including after the death of George Floyd in 2020.

He is best remembered as a troubleshooter who handled corporate emergencies such as losses at Dime Bancorp during the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s, the Times reported.

Lazard also noted his service as chairman of the Apollo Theater and the Jazz Foundation of America, and his positions on the boards of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

He is survived by his wife, Laura, with whom he had three children, the Times reported.