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Francis Alexander Shields

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Francis Alexander Shields
Born(1941-05-16)May 16, 1941
DiedApril 25, 2003(2003-04-25) (aged 61)
Other namesFrank Shields
Alma materUniversity of Pennsylvania
Spouses
(m. 1964; div. 1966)
Diana Lippert
(m. 1970)
Children4, including Brooke
Parents
Relatives

Francis Alexander Shields Jr. (May 16, 1941 – April 25, 2003) was an American businessman and an executive at Revlon in New York City.[1][2] He was the father of actress Brooke Shields.[3]

Early life

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Shields was born in New York City.[1] He was the eldest son of Francis Xavier Alexander Sr., a top-ranking American tennis player and Davis Cup winner, and Italian Princess Donna Marina Torlonia di Civitella-Cesi.[2][1] After his parents' divorce, his father married Katharine Mortimer in 1949.[4]

He attended the Buckley School in Manhattan and St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire.[1] He attended in the University of Pennsylvania.[1] While at Penn, he captained the crew that rowed in the Henley Royal Regatta in 1962 and was a member of St. Anthony Hall.[5]

Career

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Shields started his career with Loeb Rhoades.[1] He then worked in sales and marketing for Revlon and Estee Lauder.[1] He also worked for Handy Associates, an executive recruiting firm in New York City.[1]

He formed his own real estate firm, Frank Shields Associates, in Palm Beach, Florida in 1989.[1]

Personal life

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In 1964, Shields married Maria Theresia "Teri" Schmon.[3] They had a daughter, Brooke Christa Shields in 1965.[3] They divorced when their daughter was five months old.[6][3]

In 1970, he married Diana "Didi" Lippert, former wife of Thomas Gore Auchincloss[7] (son of Hugh D. Auchincloss). They had three daughters: Marina Torlonia Shields, Olympia Torlonia Shields, and Christina Torlonia Shields.[8]

An avid hunter and fisherman, Shields spent much of his free time at Canoe Creek, at a camp he owned in rural west Florida.[1]

He was a longtime member of The Brook, The Bath and Tennis Club in Palm Beach, Florida, Piping Rock Club, and The Racquet and Tennis Club.[1]

In 1980, Shields founded the Power Ten, a New York nonprofit organization supporting youth rowing and making contributions to the U.S. National rowing team and U.S. Olympic rowing team through the National Rowing Foundation and Row New York.[5][9]

In 2003, Shields died in Palm Beach, of a "protracted illness" at the age of 61.[1] After his death, the National Rowing Foundation offered the Frank Shields Fellowships.[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Francis A. Shields Obituary (2003)". Legacy.com. The Palm Beach Post. April 28, 2003. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
  2. ^ a b "PRINCESS DIES IN CRASH: Marina Torlonia Slater Killed in Accident in Italy". The New York Times. September 16, 1960. p. 3. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Baum, Joan (2015-10-30). "Brooke Shields Opens Up About Her Mom in Bridgehampton – Dan's Papers". www.danspapers.com. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
  4. ^ "Deaths BLAINE, KATHARINE MORTIMER". The New York Times. April 17, 2003. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  5. ^ a b c "Frank Shields Fellowships". National Rowing Foundation. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
  6. ^ "Brooke Shields's Mother, Teri Shields, Dies at 79" Archived 2016-08-28 at the Wayback Machine. People. November 6, 2012.
  7. ^ "Ella Davila Wed to T. G. Auchincloss Jr". The New York Times. May 29, 1988. p. 45. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  8. ^ Shields, B (2008). Welcome to Your World, Baby. HarperCollins. p. 6.
  9. ^ "Power Ten New York Inc - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2022-06-06.