Money Worries

The Rockefellers diversify

Everybody frets about money, even the Rockefellers. Shortly after the Standard Oil trust was broken up in 1911, John D. Rockefeller was said to be worth $900 million. By the time Grandson Nelson was required to air the Rockefeller finances in 1974 during his confirmation hearings to become Vice President, the family had given away some $1.4 billion in various philanthropies, but still had well over $1 billion to its name. Today the family holdings are estimated at $3 billion to $4 billion.

That may sound like a great deal of money. But there were, after all, 74 direct living descendants of John D. Jr., son of the patriarch, at last count. While none of them are pleading poverty, they all need a little extra cash for their various philanthropies, not to mention living expenses.

So last week, in hopes of improving the family's fortunes, a Rockefeller holding company announced plans to pay about $332 million for five television stations and four radio stations owned by the Outlet Co. of Providence, R.I. The move into broadcasting is part of a new family strategy to diversify its holdings and bring a better return on investments.

The television and radio stations are being acquired by Rockefeller Center Inc., a private company that manages about two-thirds of the family's wealth. Its biggest single asset is Rockefeller Center, the eight-block, 17-building office complex in New York City that celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. While the center reportedly generates revenues of $500 million a year, its 1981 profit was only $20 million. The Rockefellers have tried several schemes to wring more cash out of the complex and last year had even arranged to sell an interest in the center, but the deal fell through. Other family ventures include office buildings in Phoenix, Detroit and Newark, a paper and plastics manufacturer, an oil and gas company, the New York City-based Cushman & Wakefield Inc. real estate management firm, and a company that produces traveling versions of the stage shows at Radio City Music Hall.

The architect of the plan to diversify the family wealth is Rockefeller Center President Richard Voell, 49, former chief operating officer of the revived Perm Central Corp. Voell, who has been on the job little more than a year, has targeted communications, financial services and entertainment as areas for expansion. But moving into new fields has not been easy. One investment has already flopped. Earlier this year, the company shut down a pay-cable TV service, the Entertainment Channel, which it co-owned with RCA Corp., after the operation ran up losses of $50 million. Now that it has been proved that even Rockefellers can lose money, Voell hopes that the latest entry in communications will be a winner. . This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.