John Carl Malone (born March 7, 1941) is an American billionaire businessman, landowner, and philanthropist. He was chief executive officer (CEO) of Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI), a cable and media giant, from 1973 to 1996. As of 2016, Malone is now chairman and largest voting shareholder of Liberty Media, Liberty Global, Warner Bros. Discovery and QVC Group (formerly known as Liberty Interactive). He once owned 7% of Lionsgate and Starz Inc.
He was interim CEO of Liberty Media until succeeded by former Microsoft and Oracle CFO Greg Maffei in 2005.
From 2011 to 2021, Malone ranked as the largest private landowner in the United States with , according to The Land Report. In 2021, his landholdings were exceeded by Sierra Pacific Industries’ Red Emmerson, according to the Land Report 100.
Early life
John C. Malone was born on March 7, 1941, in Milford, Connecticut. Malone is a Catholic.
In 1959, Malone graduated from Hopkins School in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1963, he graduated from Yale University with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and economics, where he was a Phi Beta Kappa and National Merit scholar. In 1964, Malone graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a master's degree in industrial management.
Business career<!--'500-channel universe' redirects here-->
In 1963, Malone began his business career at Bell Telephone Laboratories of AT&T, working in economic planning and research and development. In 1968, he joined McKinsey & Company, and in 1970, became group vice president at General Instrument Corporation (GI). He was later president of Jerrold Electronics, a GI subsidiary. For twenty-four years, from 1973 to 1996, Malone was president and CEO of Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI).
In business dealings Malone has been dubbed "Darth Vader", a nickname allegedly given to him by Al Gore when Malone was the head of TCI.
In 1994, Wired portrayed Malone on their cover as "Mad Max" from The Road Warrior (also known as Mad Max 2), with an interview describing his battles with the FCC.
Philanthropy
In 2000, Malone gave $24 million to the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science in New Haven for the construction of Yale's Daniel L. Malone Engineering Center, named in honor of his father.
In 2021, the Malones donated $25 million to Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine, for the hospital's $534 million capital improvement project. Maine Medical Center will name a new tower for cardiac and vascular services the Malone Family Tower; Leslie Malone recently received cardiac care at the hospital.
Malone Scholars Program
In 1997, he established the Malone Family Foundation, which operates the Malone Scholars Program that provides scholarship endowments to certain private schools throughout the United States. In 2008, their son, Evan D. Malone, joined the board of Liberty Media. John Malone is known to shun the limelight and glamorous lifestyle, taking his family vacations alongside long-time friend Gary Biskup in a recreational vehicle. The State of Colorado named Malone a "Citizen of the West" in 2016.
Malone's political beliefs have been described as libertarian. He is on the board of directors for the Cato Institute. He donated US$250,000 to Donald Trump. Since March 2023, Malone has donated $347,600 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. He also expressed support for Michael Bloomberg in the 2020 United States presidential election.