Gary A. Tanaka

Infobox Person
name = Gary A. Tanaka
caption =
birth_date = birth date and age|1943|6|23
birth_place = Hunt, Idaho
death_date =
death_place =
occupation = Businessman:
Financier
Racehorse owner

Gary A. Tanaka (born June 23, 1943 in Hunt, Idaho) is a Japanese-American businessman who co-founded the investment company Amerindo Investments in 1979 along with Alberto Vilar. Tanaka was born during World War II in the Minidoka re-location camp in Idaho. He graduated from MIT, then earned a PhD degree at Imperial College London in the United Kingdom with a dissertation on the mathematics of the transition from laminar to turbulent flow in a fluid flowing over a solid surface. He lives in London with wife Renata and children Janeczka and Alex in a house which was once Dwight D. Eisenhower's wartime headquarters.

Tanaka is perhaps best known for his donation of £27m to Imperial College, which resulted in construction of the Tanaka Building in 2004, designed by the international architecture, planning and design studio Foster and Partners. The building houses Imperial College Business School, and combines the business school's facilities with a new front entrance for the College.

Thoroughbred horse racing

Tanaka owns a significant thoroughbred racing stable. His horses have won major races in Europe, North America plus prestigious Asian events, notably the Hong Kong Mile and the Singapore Airlines International Cup. The success of his stable has come in large part from his ability to spot good quality thoroughbreds racing in other countries and bring them to the US where they can run for larger purses, thus raising their resale and stud value. Many races elsewhere are held on grass tracks, while US races are usually run on dirt. Not every horse can make the transition, but Dr. Tanaka and his trainers have been successful in many significant cases. Much more information about Tanaka's stable is available in the cover article of the March 29, 2008 issue of "The Bloodhorse".

article about Tanaka's business partner, mentioning that Tanaka will go to trial, and the name of Tanaka's lawyer: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/22/arts/22vila.html