Marvin H. Davis (August 31, 1925 – September 25, 2004) was an American industrialist. He made his fortunes as the chair of Davis Petroleum and at one time owned 20th Century Fox, the Pebble Beach Corporation, the Beverly Hills Hotel, and the Aspen Skiing Company.

Early life and education

Marvin Davis was raised in a Jewish family, the son of Jack Davis and Jean Spitzer. Jack Davis became a successful fashion buyer for New York department stores. He went on to found Jay Day Dress Co., a well-priced line of women's dresses that achieved great success, selling 200,000 dresses per-month to stores across the nation.

Petroleum business

thumb|A blank Davis Oil Company's stock certificate

He joined his father in the oil exploration business and was later nicknamed "Mr. Wildcatter." The Davis Oil Company drilled for oil and gas in the West beginning in the 1940s and was incorporated in 1986 as Davis Petroleum, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. In 1960s–1980s, it became a leading independent oil and gas producer in the United States,

Marvin Davis's son Gregg Davis took over as president of Davis Petroleum and Davis Offshore in 1997.

Davis senior's partner Ray Ryan was a pioneer of the oil deal known as the "third for a quarter," where investors in a wildcat oil well would each buy one-quarter of the well's production for a third of the cost of drilling the well, leaving all costs paid and Davis and Ryan owners of one-quarter of the well.

In 1981, Davis sold most of his oil holdings for $600 million to the Canadian company Hiram Walker-Consumers Home, Ltd. Fox's assets included Pebble Beach Golf Links, the Aspen Skiing Company, and a Century City property upon which he built and twice sold Fox Plaza, which was made famous as "Nakatomi Plaza" in the 1988 action film Die Hard. While Davis was head of 20th Century Fox, President Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy, complained to him about excessive sexuality in films. Reagan suggested to Davis that he produce films that implied, rather than showed, sex, in the style of director Ernst Lubitsch. Davis sold this interest to Rupert Murdoch for $250 million in March 1984. Davis later backed out of a deal with Murdoch to purchase John Kluge's Metromedia television stations, which would form what is now the Fox network. Davis sold Pebble Beach Golf Links to Japanese businessman Minoru Isutani for $841 million in 1990. Winning a bidding war against the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, Davis bought the Beverly Hills Hotel for $135 million in 1986. Davis later sold the hotel to the sultan for a $65 million profit. A proponent of greenmail, the threatening of takeover bids that never come to pass, Davis said "All you have to do is look at the pretty girl and everyone thinks you're sleeping with her. You don't have to put up any money". In a 2002 deal structured by businessman Ramy El-Batrawi, Davis made an unsolicited $15 billion bid for the entertainment assets of Vivendi.

Philanthropy and political donations

Davis was a long-time philanthropist, especially for medical research. A research building at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles is named for him. The Davis's daughter Dana is a diabetic, and they founded the Children's Diabetes Foundation which hosts the biannual Carousel of Hope ball to raise money for juvenile diabetes.

Davis and his wife were for many years major donors and fundraisers for the Democratic Party. When President Bill Clinton failed to appear personally at the Carousel of Hope ball and instead sent a videotaped message, Barbara Davis told a reporter: "There are 25 people in our family...I told the White House person, "You are now talking to 25 new Republicans"".

  • Dana Davis, a Type 1 diabetic, is an active philanthropist with a focus on diabetes. She began her career as an elementary school teacher but was forced to retire due to diabetes-related foot problems which required eight separate surgeries. Unhappy with the stylishly poor selection of shoes available for people with foot problems, she developed her own line of footwear, Dana Davis Shoes, which meshed the required comfort levels with high fashion. She is now the executive director of the Children's Diabetes Foundation.
  • Gregg Davis was the President of Davis Petroleum Corp., Davis Petroleum Pipeline, and Davis Offshore, the family's former oil and gas companies. He is the former husband of American actress Kim Richards. Davis and Richards had two children together: daughter Whitney and son Chad.
  • Patricia Ann Davis Raynes married New York real estate developer Martin Raynes in a Jewish ceremony in 1983. In 2005, Patricia sued her mother and four siblings alleging that they "looted" a trust fund set up by her paternal grandfather, Jack, who created the original Davis Oil Co. that was the foundation of the family's wealth.
  • John Davis (born 1954) is an American film producer and the founder of Davis Entertainment.
  • Nancy Davis Rickel, diagnosed with Multiple sclerosis, is an active supporter of charities dedicated to its cure. She has been married twice. Her first husband was Turkish American wine grower, Nebil Zarif. They had three children: Brandon Davis, Alexander Davis and actor Jason Davis. They have twin daughters: Isabella and Mariella. She is also the godmother of Nicole Richie.

In 1984, the Davises purchased The Knoll, a 45,000-square-foot house in Beverly Hills from Kenny Rogers, where they hosted lavish Christmas parties.

Davis was identified with his towering stature, measuring tall. He was known for his large appetite, with Fox executive Alan Hirschfield saying that Davis "was the poster boy for everything you shouldn't eat"; he weighed over for much of his adult life, though he lost about as his health failed in his final years. Her lawsuit alleged that Marvin had entrapped and beaten Patricia in an attempt to get her to sign documents giving him control over her finances.