Billionaire hotelier and philanthropist Barron Hilton, who served at the helm of Hilton Hotels Corp. for 30 years, died this month at the age of 91.
"On behalf of everyone at Hilton, I extend our deepest condolences to the Hilton family," Hilton president and CEO Christopher Nassetta said in a statement. "From his leadership of our company for more than three decades to the transformative work he led with the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation for many years, Barron was a man unlike any other. I always found inspiration in how he saw the tremendous potential of hospitality to change the world for the better -- and in the unique and meaningful ways he sought to make that happen."
The son of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton, Barron Hilton was born in Dallas on Oct. 23, 1927. After a stint as a successful entrepreneur -- founding organizations like McDonald Oil Co., Air Finance Corp. and the American Football League's Chargers -- Hilton succeeded his father as Hilton Hotels president and CEO in 1966.
Among other innovative real estate transactions, Hilton leveraged the franchise model to grow the company's business, generating a 15% average annual rate of shareholder return, with dividends, during his 30-year tenure. He retired as chief executive in 1996.
Hilton also played a major role in the expansion of the company's philanthropic arm, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, growing his father's posthumous donation of $160 million in stock into an endowment of more than $2.9 billion.
In 2007, Hilton announced that he would leave 97% of his wealth to the foundation. This gift is projected to increase the group's endowment to $6.3 billion and will make him the organization's largest donor to date.
Hilton was preceded in death by his wife, Marilyn Hawley Hilton.
He is survived by eight children, 15 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.