From the restaurant business to high tech, the fifty wealthiest Greek Americans have built small empires and left their mark on the economy.
Dan Georgakas reviews this year’s ‘Super Fifty’ list.

Since the 1970s, Greek Americans consistently have been among the three most affluent ethnic groups in America. This high standard is largely due to the circumstances that, unlike numerous ethnic groups, there are relatively few Greek Americans living at or below the poverty line. Greek America also has more than its share of the superrich. For example, the number of Greeks on the Forbes Listing of the 400 Richest Americans is 500 per cent greater than the Greek American percentage of the general population.
Novelist F Scott Fitzgerald famously observed in The Great Gatsby, “The rich are different than you and me.” This is only a partial truth regarding the lives and achievements of the wealthiest Greek Americans. Their personal histories often reflect many of the realities of Greek America, an extraordinary cultural mix of dynamic change and vibrant tradition.
Each year the National Herald, the English-language edition of Ethnikos Kyrix, publishes a list of the wealthiest fifty Greek Americans. The data derived from that list reveals some interesting patterns. Many of the ‘Super Fifty’ are in pursuits long-associated with Greeks: real estate, the food industry, finance, furs, and shipping. Just as many, however, are at the cutting edge of new technology and bioscience. Like most Greek Americans, their outmarriage rate is quite high and most have earned college degrees. There is also a marked preference for privately-held or family-owned businesses or both. Most of the Super Fifty are second-generation Greeks from rather humble origins, and all but one of the Greek-born embody the rags to riches dream beloved of American folklore.
Topping the Super Fifty list this year is the Haseotes family (net worth 3.8 billion), which owns the Cumberland Farms chain of convenience stores and gasoline stations prominent in New England. The name of the chain stems the farm started by their father, a poor immigrant who arrived in America early in the twentieth century.
The single wealthiest Greek American is George Phydias Mitchell (2.8 billion). His father, an immigrant from Tripolis, arrived in the United States in 1919 and settled in Galveston, Texas. Mitchell fondly remembers church years spent in a congregation of Greeks and Serbs, but he and his wife, a former Catholic, subsequently became Episcopalians. The Texas environment led Mitchell to an interest in oil, the field in which he made his fortune. During the second world war, he fought in the forces led by General Patton. Part of his eventual success stemmed from his study of geology at Texas A & M. Like most of the Super Fifty he has been a generous supporter of his alma mater and higher education in general. Mitchell is particularly proud of creating The Woodlands, an environmentally friendly, planned community launched in 1974.
Peter Peterson (2.2 b), one of the most famed of the Super Fifty, also is among those who least identify with Greek ethnicity. His achievements include being co-founder of the Blackstone Group, Secretary of Commerce (a Nixon appointee), Chairman of Lehman Brothers (1973), and member of the Federal Reserve Bank of NY (2000-2004). His wife is founder and chairman of Children’s Workshop Television, the producer of “Sesame Street”.
Four other Super Fifty associated with high finance are James Dimon (60 m), Stratton Sclavos (255 m), John Thain (300 m), and John Calamos (1.4 b). Dimon is currently CEO of J.P.Morgan and Sclavos directs three enterprises worth billions: Juniper Networks, Intuit, and Salesforce.com. Thain became chair of Merrill Lynch in 2008 and has been CEO of the New York Stock Exchange. John Calamos, a legendary investor in mutual funds, is the only one of the quartet who has been much involved with Greek America. He is particularly renowned among Chicago Greeks for donating two million dollars to the Hellenic Museum and Cultural Center which he would like to see become the centerpiece for advancing Hellenism in America.
Michael Jaharis (1.8 b), who made his fortune in pharmaceuticals, is one of the most generous among the Super Fifty in his support of Greek culture. He is a major benefactor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s groundbreaking Byzantine shows and associated educational projects. Since 2000, he has served as Vice-Chair of the Archdiocesan Council of the Greek Orthodox Church in America. His other philanthropies have focused on biomedical and nutritional science.
Like Jaharis, George Behrakis (900 m) made his fortune in pharmaceuticals and possesses a strong sense of Hellenism. In 2001, he donated two million dollars to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts to support Christine Kondoleon’s position as curator of Greek and Roman Art. He has subsequently made even larger donations. Behrakis is a member of the Archdiocesan Committee, Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and publisher of the Hellenic Voice.
The only person in the Super Fifty active in the traditional Greek economic bastion of shipping is Peter Georgiopoulos (400 million). His family, one of the few Greek immigrants of the 1800s, became quite Americanized. He jokingly notes his favorite foods are hamburgers and steak. Two years ago, however, he and his wife converted to Greek Orthodoxy. He told the National Herald, “.…while I still like plain foods best, I’ve learned to like and even cook Greek food, too. But I never forget that if I hadn’t been brought up American, I might never had made it so big in a classic Greek career.”
The only women among the Super Fifty are Evangeline Gouletas (215 million), Rita Wilson (200 million), and Jennifer Aniston (160 million). When Gouletas, a Chicago real estate tycoon, married Hugh Carey, Governor of New York (1972-1982). she became part of the Democratic political world that includes Ted Kennedy, Michael Dukakis, and Jimmy Carter. She also traveled in the social circles of Donald Trump. Less well known is that the late Patriarch of Jerusalem named her Grand Commander of the Holy Sepulcher and Commander of the Temple of Jerusalem’s Sovereign Military Order.
Rita Wilson’s career in Hollywood is highlighted for Greek Americans by her production credits for My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the highest-grossing independent film in American history. Her film roles include parts in hits such as Sleepless in Seattle and Runaway Bride. Her television credits include Frasier, and she starred as Roxie Hart in the Broadway revival of Chicago (June-August, 2006). One condition of her marriage to superstar Tom Hanks in 1988 was that Hanks would convert to Greek Orthodoxy. The couple retains a close relationship to the local Greek Orthodox priest who officiated at Hanks’s baptism.
For many Americans, Jennifer Aniston will forever be Rachel Green of Friends, the television super hit that ran for ten seasons. Now in syndication Friends is aired somewhere in the world every day. Aniston’s subsequent film career has been less spectacular, but includes hits such as Bruce Almighty. She has, however, earned the respect of film critics for her decision to play film characters quite different than her Rachel Green alter ego. Aniston is the daughter of daytime soap opera star John Aniston (Days of Our Lives).
Prominent among Greeks in the traditional food trade sector is John Catsimatidis (1.8 billion), owner of properties such as the Red Apple supermarket chain in New York. Catsimatidis publishes the Hellenic Times and runs the Hellenic Times Scholarships which have assisted Greek American students for over 17 years. Catsimatidis has long voiced an interest in running as an independent for mayor of New York.
Also expressing considerable interest in politics has been. John Paterakis (250 million), head of various baking concerns, who has taken a long-term interest in the political life of Maryland. He has supported former Vice-President Spiro Agnew, retired Senator John Sarbanes, a number of former Baltimore mayors, and the present governor. His commercial enterprises include a firm that produces the buns used by McDonalds.
John Payiavlas (650 million), C. Dean Metropoulos (1.3 billion), and Louis Katopodis (150 million) are also food magnates. John Payiavlas operates the nation’s largest family-owned food contractor, which is involved with vending machines, institutional dining, and coffee services. He has been chairman of the Leadership 100 endowment and is Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. He is a major supporter of institutions such as the Cleveland [Health] Clinic. Louis Katopodis is CEO of Fiesta Mart, a grocery chain that offers ethnic foods to Mexican and Asian families in the Texas area. He describes his success as “serving the under-served.” C. Dean Metropoulos operates a chain of supermarkets in New England.
Real estate moguls usually are most active in a specific geographic region. George Argyros (1.4 billion) has major holdings throughout California. One of the top Republican fundraisers in America, he was appointed by George W. Bush as Ambassador to Spain (2001). George Marcus (400 million), another Californian, has important links to Greek American intellectual life. He and his wife have been instrumental in raising funds for the Nikos Kazantzakis Chair in Modern Greek Studies at San Francisco State University. Peter Dion (275 million) combines his real estate holdings with the fur industry, another traditional Greek trade. Dion is a founding member of Leadership 100 and Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Estathios Valiotis (600 m) is well-known to Greek Americans in New York due to his role in creating the Marathon Bank, which has frequently supported Greek American endeavors.
Two real estate giants, Angelo Tsakopoulos (600 million) and Nicholas Gouletas (300 m), are among the Super Fifty born in Greece. Gouletas, who now controls considerable property in Chicago and Las Vegas arrived in the US with his poverty-stricken parents in 1944. Tsakopoulos arrived in l951 on the day of his fifteenth birthday. As a young man he was a shoeshine boy, a farmhand, and a waiter. Since his financial successes, the hard-driving Tsakopoulos has been a power broker in California’s Democrat Party. He has strong ties to Nancy Pelosi the powerful Speaker of the House and to Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. He was an enthusiastic backer of Phil Angelides who was California State Treasure for eight years but lost a gubernatorial bid to Arnold Schwarzenegger. Tsakopoulos has been hosted in the White House by the Clintons, and he has hosted Constantine Mitsotakis, former Prime Minister of Greece, and Dora Bakoyannis, current Foreign Minister of Greece and former Mayor of Athens. His pride in Greek culture has led him to establish Hellenic Studies chairs at Georgetown, Stanford, and Columbia.
Many of the Super Fifty have an interest in professional sports. The most obvious of these is Pete Sampras (60 million), who dominated professional tennis for decades. Among his achievements is a record-breaking six consecutive years as winner of the US Grand Slam men’s singles title and seven wins at Wimbledon, a record shared with William Renshaw. Peter Karamanos Jr. (340 million), operating from a company based on computer technology, is owner of the National Hockey League’s Caroline Hurricanes. Alex Spanos (1 billion), a real estate tycoon, owns the National Football League’s San Diego Chargers. Peter Angelos (425 million), a prominent trial lawyer, is more famed as CEO of the American League’s Baltimore Orioles. Angelos is an avid Democrat who was elected to multi-terms in the Baltimore City Council but lost a mayoral bid in l964.
Ted Leonsis (700 m), vice chairman emeritus of American Online and among the founders of Apple MacIntosh, meshes interests in technology, sports, and cinema. He is founder/majority owner of a firm that owns the National Hockey League’s Washington Capitals. He also is one of the owners of the National Basketball Association’s Washington Wizards and the Baltimore-Washington Ticketmasters. Recently, he has developed an interest in making film documentaries that advocate social change. His Nanking premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. His most recent production is Kicking It.
Newer industries involving computer technology and biomedics have been fertile ground for Greek Americans. George Perlegos (100 million) controls corporations heavily involved with manufacturing semiconductors and memory devices. Michael Kalogris (400 million) has been CEO of Suncom Wireless, which serves the southeastern United States and Caribbean. Sotiris Fassoulis (200 million) is chairman of a firm that produces military technology such as night vision systems, helicopter parts, and sophisticated military ammunition. James Demetriades (315 million) was a child prodigy who began writing software programs when he was only nine years old. Nicholas Galakatos (350 million) has devised new methods for dealing with a variety of illnesses. including kidney disease, sleep diseases, and circadian rhythm abnormalities.
Emmanuel A. Kampouris (350 million) has served as CEO of American Standard Companies the leading global manufacturer of technologically advanced air conditioning systems, bathroom and kitchen hardware, and vehicle control systems. Prior to working for Standard in the United States, Kampouris worked for Standard in Greece and Egypt. He is an advocate and financial supporter of organizations such as the Hudson Institute, which work to promote global peace. He is convinced the Orthodox Church can become a voice of prophecy and moral consciousness. To that end he is publisher of Kairos, a journal that seeks to educate, support, and embolden the Orthodox clergy.
D. James Bidzos (350 million) is founder, chairman, and interim CEO of Verisign, the world largest provider of Internet and telecommunications security software. Bidzos arrived in the US as a young boy. His father was a barber and his mother managed a restaurant. Michael Capellas (300 million) has been CEO of First Data Corporation for two years and is on the board of Cisco Systems. Capellas credits his work ethic to his father who fought in the Greek Army during the second world war before immigrating to the United States where he first worked as a day laborer.
A national leader in waste management, a need accelerated by the new technology, is John Rangos Sr. (423 million), a decorated veteran of the Korean War. His Chambers Development Corporation has developed initiatives regarding commercial recycling programs and non-polluting landfills that protect the water supply. He is founding chairman and honorary lifetime president of the International Orthodox Christian Charities. This year he was honored by the American Hellenic Institute for his public service and heritage achievements.
John Leontakianakos (120 million) and John Pappajohn (700 million) are two Greek-born Super Fifty members who have demonstrated a strong concern for the welfare of young people. Leontakianakos heads enterprises that combine biotechnology and homeland security. He was born in a house adjacent to the Acropolis but raised in Queens where he attended the Transfiguration School. Later, he served in Lebanon as a US Marine. He is founder of the Children’s Research Institute for Personalized Medicine, a charity that helps children with seemingly incurable disease to find alternative treatment.
John Pappajohn arrived in the United States at age nine months in the 1930s. His father died when he was sixteen and he had to pay his own way through school. In due course he earned a business management degree at the University of Iowa and established investment firms specializing in advanced biomedical and biotechnology products. He has established a college scholarship fund that in a single year made $366,500 in grants. Thirty-two of the grants went to members of St. George Orthodox Church in Mason City, Iowa. Pappajohn also funds the Pappajohn Clinical Cancer Center and five Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Centers at Iowa universities and colleges.
Unique among the Super Fifty is George Andreas (700 million), who has combined careers in the military, the arts, and commerce. Born in Athens, early in his life he became associated with prominent Greek painters and helped restore the interior of Saint Basil’s church in central Athens. He later attended military academies in Athens and Thessaloniki. With the onset of the junta of l967, Andreas, a respectable military officer, exiled himself to America where he established a mammoth car dealership and made excellent investments in real estate. His major interest, however, has been the arts. His current artwork-in-progress offers a social critique of the anarchist movement.
Nicholas Bouras (250 million) is among the few Greeks who prospered in a traditional manufacturing industry. Born in Pontiac, Michigan, he grew up in Chicago where he gradated from nearby Northwestern University’s School of Commerce. Bouras enlisted in the US military in 1942 and flew forty-four combat missions in medium bombers as a bombardier and navigator. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross, eight air medals, five battle stars, and achieved the rank of Major. He worked for US Steel during the 1940s and 1950s, the period when that firm was extraordinarily prosperous. He then founded manufacturing firms associated with making steel and steel products. Dion has made many philanthropic contributions to the Orthodox Church, served as president of his parish council, and has been chair of the parish’s building committee for over thirty years. He is a member of the Archdiocesan Council’s Executive Committee and Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Excelling at another traditional industry are Kosta and Tom Kartsotis (325 million) who design and manufacture quality watches and associated leather goods. Their worldwide enterprises feature designs that have even impressed the Swiss, the masters of fine watch making. Their Fossil Inc. distributes famous brands of all types and produces populist lines associated with films such as Pirates of the Caribbean. Two years ago they teamed with the National Football League to make the official watch collection for each team.
What emerges from this capsule overview of the Super Fifty is that their success is rarely linked directly to ethnicity but often reflects Hellenic cultural values. They are generous philanthropists but they are not particularly interested in Greek American institutions. The majority, in fact, has limited connections to the intellectual and social life of Greek America. Association with the Orthodox Church is not prevalent and when it does exist, it is not generally manifested at the parish level. Although the Super Fifty cannot be regarded as a group offering much direct support to their fellow Greek Americans, they are certainly spectacular models of what can be achieved in America by those of Hellenic heritage.

Issue: May/June 2009