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]
Francis Alexander Shields | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 16, 1941 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 25, 2003 (aged 61) Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Other names | Frank Shields |
| Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 4, including Brooke |
| Parents | |
| Relatives |
|
Early life
editShields 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
editShields began his career with Wall Street brokerage Loeb Rhoades.[1] He then worked in sales and marketing for cosmetics firms 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
editIn 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
edit- ^ 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.
- ^ 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.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Deaths BLAINE, KATHARINE MORTIMER". The New York Times. April 17, 2003. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
- ^ a b c "Frank Shields Fellowships". National Rowing Foundation. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
- ^ "Brooke Shields's Mother, Teri Shields, Dies at 79" Archived 2016-08-28 at the Wayback Machine. People. November 6, 2012.
- ^ "Ella Davila Wed to T. G. Auchincloss Jr". The New York Times. May 29, 1988. p. 45. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
- ^ Shields, B (2008). Welcome to Your World, Baby. HarperCollins. p. 6.
- ^ "Power Ten New York Inc - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2022-06-06.