Tom Bernstein
Encyclopedia
Tom A. Bernstein is president and co-founder of Chelsea Piers
, L.P., which was formed in 1992 to develop and operate the Chelsea Piers Sports and Entertainment Complex. The Chelsea Piers is a 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) waterfront sports village located between 17th and 23rd Streets along Manhattan’s Hudson River. This $100 million, privately financed project has transformed four historic, but long-neglected, piers into a major center for sports and recreation, with over 4 million visitors each year.
From 1983 to 1998, Bernstein was one of the two principals of Silver Screen Management, Inc., and the affiliated Silver Screen companies, which served as the managing general partners of the Silver Screen partnerships. These partnerships raised approximately $1 billion from 140,000 investors to finance films produced by The Walt Disney Company
and Home Box Office, Inc. The 75 films financed by the Silver Screen partnerships include such box office successes as Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
, Pretty Woman
, The Little Mermaid (1989 film)
and Three Men and a Baby
. In 1984, Bernstein produced the motion picture Sakharov, which starred Glenda Jackson and Jason Robards, for Home Box Office Inc. The film was the most honored show at the Seventh Annual Awards for Cable Excellence, winning four major awards including Best Movie or Miniseries.
From 1989 to 1998, Bernstein was one of the principal owners of the Texas Rangers (baseball)
Baseball Club with the ownership group led by George W. Bush
, who later went on to become the president of the United States.
Bernstein has been actively involved in a number of pro bono activities. He is vice-chair of Human Rights First
, an organization founded in 1978 by Michael Posner (lawyer)
. A member of the Council on Foreign Relations
, he is a board member of several other non-profit organizations, including WNYC Radio (New York's public radio stations), Fresh Air Fund
, Partnership for Public Service
, City Year New York and the Center for Civil and Human Rights (in Atlanta, Georgia). Bernstein also served as a member of the transition team of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
.
In 2002, Bernstein was appointed by President Bush to serve as a Council Member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., where he now serves as a member of the Executive Committee and as chair of the Committee on Conscience. Bernstein was a major fundraiser for the former president's two election campaigns.
From 2002 to 2005, Mr. Bernstein was co-founder and chairman of the International Freedom Center
, a cultural institution developed for the World Trade cite as an educational complement to the World Trade Center Memorial.
From 1978 to 1983, Bernstein was an attorney with the entertainment department of the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
in New York. He served as a law clerk from 1977-1978 for the Honorable Jack B. Weinstein
in Federal District Court in New York. Bernstein graduated summa cum laude from Yale College and holds a J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal and now serves as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council.
Chelsea Piers
Chelsea Piers is a series of piers on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City that was a passenger ship terminal in the early 1900s that was used by the RMS Lusitania and was the destination of the RMS Titanic....
, L.P., which was formed in 1992 to develop and operate the Chelsea Piers Sports and Entertainment Complex. The Chelsea Piers is a 30 acres (121,405.8 m²) waterfront sports village located between 17th and 23rd Streets along Manhattan’s Hudson River. This $100 million, privately financed project has transformed four historic, but long-neglected, piers into a major center for sports and recreation, with over 4 million visitors each year.
From 1983 to 1998, Bernstein was one of the two principals of Silver Screen Management, Inc., and the affiliated Silver Screen companies, which served as the managing general partners of the Silver Screen partnerships. These partnerships raised approximately $1 billion from 140,000 investors to finance films produced by The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
and Home Box Office, Inc. The 75 films financed by the Silver Screen partnerships include such box office successes as Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
, Pretty Woman
Pretty Woman
Pretty Woman is a 1990 romantic comedy film set in Los Angeles, California. Written by J.F. Lawton and directed by Garry Marshall, this motion picture features Richard Gere and Julia Roberts, and also Hector Elizondo, Ralph Bellamy, and Jason Alexander in supporting roles. Roberts played the only...
, The Little Mermaid (1989 film)
The Little Mermaid (1989 film)
The Little Mermaid is a 1989 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale of the same name. Distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, the film was originally released to theaters on November 14, 1989 and is the twenty-eighth film in...
and Three Men and a Baby
Three Men and a Baby
Three Men and a Baby is a 1987 comedy film starring Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, Nancy Travis , and Ted Danson, and directed by Leonard Nimoy, in his first non-Star Trek movie directorial role. It follows the mishaps and adventures of three bachelors as they attempt to adapt their lives to...
. In 1984, Bernstein produced the motion picture Sakharov, which starred Glenda Jackson and Jason Robards, for Home Box Office Inc. The film was the most honored show at the Seventh Annual Awards for Cable Excellence, winning four major awards including Best Movie or Miniseries.
From 1989 to 1998, Bernstein was one of the principal owners of the Texas Rangers (baseball)
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
Baseball Club with the ownership group led by George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, who later went on to become the president of the United States.
Bernstein has been actively involved in a number of pro bono activities. He is vice-chair of Human Rights First
Human Rights First
Human Rights First is a nonprofit, nonpartisan human rights organization based in New York City and Washington, D.C....
, an organization founded in 1978 by Michael Posner (lawyer)
Michael Posner (lawyer)
Michael H. Posner is an American lawyer, the Founding Executive Director and later the President of Human Rights First , and the current Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the United States.- Early years :Posner received a B.A...
. A member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
, he is a board member of several other non-profit organizations, including WNYC Radio (New York's public radio stations), Fresh Air Fund
Fresh Air Fund
The Fresh Air Fund is a not-for-profit agency that provides free summer vacations in the country to New York City children from disadvantaged communities. Each year, thousands of children visit volunteer host families in 13 states from Virginia to Maine and Canada through the Friendly Town...
, Partnership for Public Service
Partnership for Public Service
The Partnership for Public Service is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to inspire a new generation of civil servants and transform the way government works....
, City Year New York and the Center for Civil and Human Rights (in Atlanta, Georgia). Bernstein also served as a member of the transition team of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg is the current Mayor of New York City. With a net worth of $19.5 billion in 2011, he is also the 12th-richest person in the United States...
.
In 2002, Bernstein was appointed by President Bush to serve as a Council Member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., where he now serves as a member of the Executive Committee and as chair of the Committee on Conscience. Bernstein was a major fundraiser for the former president's two election campaigns.
From 2002 to 2005, Mr. Bernstein was co-founder and chairman of the International Freedom Center
International Freedom Center
The International Freedom Center was a proposed museum to be located adjacent to the site of Ground Zero at the former World Trade Center in New York City, USA...
, a cultural institution developed for the World Trade cite as an educational complement to the World Trade Center Memorial.
From 1978 to 1983, Bernstein was an attorney with the entertainment department of the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is a law firm headquartered on Sixth Avenue in New York City. The firm has well-noted expertise in its corporate, personal representation, entertainment law and litigation practices, having long been a leader among national litigation firms...
in New York. He served as a law clerk from 1977-1978 for the Honorable Jack B. Weinstein
Jack B. Weinstein
Jack Bertrand Weinstein is a United States federal judge in the Eastern District of New York. Judge Weinstein was appointed in 1967 by President Lyndon Johnson. From 1980 to 1988, he served as chief judge of the district. On March 1, 1993, he took senior status; however, unlike some senior...
in Federal District Court in New York. Bernstein graduated summa cum laude from Yale College and holds a J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal and now serves as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council.
External links
- Human Rights First Website
- Chelsea Piers Website
- International Freedom Center Website
- Debra Burlingame's WSJ Op-Ed Opposing the IFC, June 8, 2005
- Richard Tofel's WSJ Op-Ed Supporting the IFC, June 9, 2005
- Westchester Housewife, WSJ Story on Debra Burlingame and the struggle over the IFC (referring to Tom Bernstein), October 1, 2005