Robert W. Dowling
Encyclopedia
Robert W. Dowling was a real estate investor and philanthropist in the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 area. Dowling College
Dowling College
Dowling College is a private co-educational liberal arts college with three campuses spread across Long Island, New York. The college's main campus in Oakdale, NY sits on the site of William K. Vanderbilt's former Idle Hour estate, which is now known as Fortunoff Hall. The Brookhaven Campus in...

 is named for him.

Biography

Dowling was born in New York City. His father Robert Emmett Dowling was president of the City Investing real estate firm. In 1915 he made the first recorded swim around Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...

 (in 13 hours 45 minutes). Following his father's death in 1943, he took over his father's company.

Although Dowling had no formal education beyond high school, his advice was sought for the design and establishment of the Parkchester, Stuyvesant Town
Stuyvesant Town
Stuyvesant Town—Peter Cooper Village is a large private residential development on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, and one of the most iconic and successful post-World War II private housing communities...

, and Peter Cooper Village real estate ventures. All three ventures marked a change in the classic New York City grid to create housing developments within a campus setting.
Dowling won a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...

 in 1948 for his contribution to theatre as result of his ownership of the Fulton Theatre, Morosco Theatre
Morosco Theatre
The Morosco Theatre was a legitimate theatre located at 217 West 45th Street in the heart of the theater district in midtown-Manhattan, New York, United States....

 and Coronet Theatre
Coronet Theatre
The Coronet Theatre is a longstanding Los Angeles theatre. Many Hollywood stars have played there, and it has been home to several important premiere productions. More than 300 plays have been produced at the Coronet. As of June 2008, the theatre is now Largo at the Coronet Theatre, an expansion...

 and Gaity Theatre

In 1957, he was among the developers who transformed the Globe Movie Theatre into a legitimate Broadway theatre now called the Lunt-Fontaine Theatre. He was among the producers of the original Sound of Music. Dowling, who was a friend of Adelphi University
Adelphi University
Adelphi University is a private, nonsectarian university located in Garden City, in Nassau County, New York, United States. It is the oldest institution of higher education on Long Island. For the sixth year, Adelphi University has been named a “Best Buy” in higher education by the Fiske Guide to...

 dean Allyn P. Robinson, provided a grant of $3 million in 1968, which allowed the Adelphi campus in Oakdale, New York
Oakdale, New York
Oakdale is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 8,075 at the 2000 census. Oakdale is in the Town of Islip.- History :...

 to become independent and it became Dowling College
Dowling College
Dowling College is a private co-educational liberal arts college with three campuses spread across Long Island, New York. The college's main campus in Oakdale, NY sits on the site of William K. Vanderbilt's former Idle Hour estate, which is now known as Fortunoff Hall. The Brookhaven Campus in...

.
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