- Alex Manoogian
Alex Manoogian (1901
Smyrna ,Ottoman Empire -10 July 1996 ,Detroit ) was a successful American businessman, industrial engineer, and well-known philanthropist. Detroit'sManoogian Mansion bears his name.Life
Born into an Armenian family, Manoogian was 19 when he arrived in the
United States fleeing theArmenian genocide in the wake of the collapse of theOttoman Empire . Arriving inBridgeport, Connecticut , in 1920, he began working as a machinist. He also worked for short periods inRhode Island and inMassachusetts . In time he was joined by his parents, two brothers and two sisters.Manoogian moved to
Detroit in 1924. Initially gaining experience in the auto industry, in 1929 he set off on his own, founding the Masco Screw Company, later known asMasco Corporation . By 1936 -- in the midst of theGreat Depression -- Manoogian had grown Masco to the point that it was listed on theNYSE . Manoogian's greatest business achievement may have been his redesign of the Delta faucet, which resulted in enormous sales for the plumbing fixture.Manoogian contributed generously to charitable organizations and educational institutions, especially to the
Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), of which organization he was voted Honorary Life President in 1989. Manoogian was also active in theKnights of Vartan and in 1940 he was elected its AvakSparapet (National Commander). In 1966 Manoogian donated his mansion to the city of Detroit. It is today the mayoral residence for Detroit.In 1968 he was responsible for the establishment of the AGBU Alex and Marie Manoogian Cultural Fund. The fund, seeded with a $1 million is devoted to the publication and translation of Armenian scholarly and literary works, and Armenian cultural worldwide.
The Manoogians have also funded (through the AGBU) schools for Armenians in the Diaspora bearing the Manoogian name in
Southfield, Michigan ;Los Angeles, California ;Buenos Aires ,Argentina ;Beirut ,Lebanon ;Zahle, Lebanon ;Egypt ;Tehran, Iran ;Montreal, Quebec ;Toronto ,Ontario ; andMontevideo ,Uruguay . Manoogian also funded numerous churches, cultural centers, university chairs for Armenian studies and museums worldwide. He also donated toWayne State University in Detroit quite generously, andManoogian Hall , Wayne State's center for international language and linguistics, is named after him.There is an Alex Manoogian Street named after him in
Yerevan , the capital ofArmenia , inMontreal ,Canada , and another inStepanakert , the capital of the Republic ofNagorno-Karabakh .His daughter,
Louise Manoogian Simone , succeeded him as President of AGBU. His son,Richard Manoogian , is CEO of Masco and a major collector of American art.References
* cite news
|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9803E0DF1E39F930A25754C0A960958260&sec=&spon=&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
accessdate=2008-08-12
title=Alex Manoogian, 95; Perfected Design of Single-Handled Faucet
work=New York Times
date=1996-07-13
first=Lawrence
last=Van Gelder
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8645235 Biography] , by Steve Takesian
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