In Memoriam
George Scharffenberger
RInternationally known businessman and financier George Thomas Scharffenberger, a USC trustee for three decades, died Nov. 10 at his home in Rolling Hills, Calif., after a brief illness. He was 82.
Scharffenberger was appointed to the USC Board of Trustees in 1973, serving as chairman from 1985 to 1990. He was appointed a life trustee in 1994.
He was chairman and CEO of City Investing Co. of New York, senior vice president of Litton Industries Inc. and chairman of Litton’s Systems Group. He also served on the board of directors of General Development Corp., Interim Systems Corp., Jorgensen Steel Co., Northrop Corp./Rockefeller Group Inc. and the Whitman Corp.
Born in Hollis, N.Y., Scharffenberger studied accounting at Columbia University, earning a B.A. degree in 1940 and joining the accounting firm of Arthur Andersen & Co. He left the firm to join the war effort in 1943. After serving in the U.S. Army, he joined International Telephone & Telegraph Corp. and rose to become president of its ITT Kellogg subsidiary. He joined Litton Industries in Southern California in 1959, serving as president of its Westrex division and later becoming a senior vice president in charge of defense and space systems.
In 1966, Scharffenberger joined City Investing Co. as president and CEO, later becoming chairman and CEO. Through mergers and acquisitions, Scharffenberger built City Investing into a diversified global company with operations in manufacturing, housing, lodging, food services, insurance and financial services. Under his leadership, annual revenues of the combined enterprise grew from $10 million to $6.5 billion. In the mid-1980s, Scharffenberger set out to realize for shareholders the values he saw in City Investing, divesting its subsidiaries and distributing the proceeds to shareholders in what was believed to be the largest voluntary liquidation in the nation’s history. Following the liquidation, he continued as chairman of AmBase Corp., an NYSE-listed insurance and financial services company, until his retirement in 1994.
He was awarded honorary doctor of humane letters degrees by USC in 1984 and Georgetown University in 1987. He received USC’s Presidential Medallion in 1990, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the College of Mount St. Vincent in 1987 and a Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges in 1989.
He is survived by his wife, Marion, whom he married in 1948, and by six children. Donations may be made to the G.T. Scharffenberger Memorial Scholarship Fund at USC.
George Scharffenberger
RInternationally known businessman and financier George Thomas Scharffenberger, a USC trustee for three decades, died Nov. 10 at his home in Rolling Hills, Calif., after a brief illness. He was 82.
Scharffenberger was appointed to the USC Board of Trustees in 1973, serving as chairman from 1985 to 1990. He was appointed a life trustee in 1994.
He was chairman and CEO of City Investing Co. of New York, senior vice president of Litton Industries Inc. and chairman of Litton’s Systems Group. He also served on the board of directors of General Development Corp., Interim Systems Corp., Jorgensen Steel Co., Northrop Corp./Rockefeller Group Inc. and the Whitman Corp.
Born in Hollis, N.Y., Scharffenberger studied accounting at Columbia University, earning a B.A. degree in 1940 and joining the accounting firm of Arthur Andersen & Co. He left the firm to join the war effort in 1943. After serving in the U.S. Army, he joined International Telephone & Telegraph Corp. and rose to become president of its ITT Kellogg subsidiary. He joined Litton Industries in Southern California in 1959, serving as president of its Westrex division and later becoming a senior vice president in charge of defense and space systems.
In 1966, Scharffenberger joined City Investing Co. as president and CEO, later becoming chairman and CEO. Through mergers and acquisitions, Scharffenberger built City Investing into a diversified global company with operations in manufacturing, housing, lodging, food services, insurance and financial services. Under his leadership, annual revenues of the combined enterprise grew from $10 million to $6.5 billion. In the mid-1980s, Scharffenberger set out to realize for shareholders the values he saw in City Investing, divesting its subsidiaries and distributing the proceeds to shareholders in what was believed to be the largest voluntary liquidation in the nation’s history. Following the liquidation, he continued as chairman of AmBase Corp., an NYSE-listed insurance and financial services company, until his retirement in 1994.
He was awarded honorary doctor of humane letters degrees by USC in 1984 and Georgetown University in 1987. He received USC’s Presidential Medallion in 1990, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the College of Mount St. Vincent in 1987 and a Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges in 1989.
He is survived by his wife, Marion, whom he married in 1948, and by six children. Donations may be made to the G.T. Scharffenberger Memorial Scholarship Fund at USC.
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In Memoriam
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