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10 Things You Didn't Know About Knicks Owner James Dolan

James Dolan

James Dolan is best known as the owner of the New York Knicks sports team. He's a businessman of American citizenship who has done very well for himself in the business world. While most sports fans know that he's heavily involved in the professional sports industry, there are many things about him that the average person outside of his circle are not aware of. We were interested in learning more about him and were impressed with what we discovered about him. Here are 10 things that you probably didn't know about James Dolan.

1. He owns several professional sports teams

The New York Knicks isn't the only pro sports team that Mr. Dolan has an interest in. In fact, he owns several. In addition to the Knicks, he also oversees the operations of the New York Rangers, and New York Liberty. He maintains an active involvement with each as well as MSG Network and also MSG Plus, of which he is the chairman.

2. He's a billionaire

James Dolan is among the richest executives in the sports industry. As of 2019, it was estimated that his total net worth is $1.5 billion dollars. He lives a life of luxury but he doesn't just take his good fortune for granted. He goes to work everyday and is dedicated to the successful management of the pro sports teams which are within his oversight and he tends to the day to day operations to ensure that all aspects of the business end are running as they should. He's very much a hands on executive who takes his position seriously.

3. He's had a long career in Cablevision

Here is another interesting fact that we learned about James Dolan. He started out his career in the media industry. In the 1990s, he was the CEO of Rainbow Programming Holdings, Inc. Prior to that he was the vice president of Cablevision Systems Corporation from 1987 through 1982. He served in the telecommunications programming and advertising sectors for over 20 years. In 2018, he became the president of CSC holdings LLC and Cablevision Systems Corporation.

4. Mr. Dolan runs the business his dad founded

James Dolan is the son of Charles F. Dolan, who founded the Cablevision Systems company in 1973, also serving as the CEO. The senior Mr. Dolan also founded the Madison Square Garden company and served as the executive chairman. James has been involved in the family business for most of his long and successful career and has followed in his father's footsteps, and he has learned about running the business from his father.

5. James Dolan has six kids

Mr. Dolan dated his current wife Kristin, who is also an executive, for several years before the two decided to tie the knot in 2002. They were married at Mar-a-Lago, a resort in Florida that is owned by President Donald J. Trump. It has been reported that the couple is having problems in their relationship and that they separated after being together for 15 years. They had two children together and James has four children from a previous marriage. In total James Dolan has six sons.

6. He is also the CEO of Madison Square Garden

James Dolan works in many aspects of his father's businesses at the executive level. In addition to leading the Cablevision company, he also serves at the executive level at Madison Square Garden Company. He served as the Cablevision CEO until it was sold in the summer of 2016.

7. He is also a singer

Here is another little known fact about billionaire James Dolan. His first career choice was to be a musician and singer. He is actually a member of JD and The Straight Shot which is a blues rock band. He started out in his early life pursuing a musical career but it wasn't long before he was enrolled at SUNY New Paltz and pursuing his degree in communications. We also learned that early in his life, James struggled with addiction.

8. He has an Irish ancestry

We also learned that James Dolan was born to parents of Irish ancestry. His mother's name is Helen Ann. She and Charles had four children together. James has two brothers named Patrick F. Doman and Thomas C. Dolan and a sister, Marianne Dolan Weber .

9. James has come under scrutiny

Sometimes it can be lonely at the top. James Dolan has had a lot of criticism for the way that he's handled the sports teams that he is in charge of. Critics take exception with many of his decisions and they have also questioned his management skills. This is something that happens on a regular basis, but you can't please everyone all of the time. This is a consequence of being the guy in charge that calls the shots and although his decisions are not popular with everyone it appears that he's been successful overall in his management of the teams.

10. James Dolan is also a philanthropist

James is a very rich man, but he's got a very big heart. He helped to found an organization called the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research. This organization was founded in 1998. He takes a personal interest in this medical research facility and he serves as the Director. More research into this dreadful disease is needed to find successful treatment options for those who are diagnosed with this often fatal type of cancer and Mr. Dolan is doing his part to help fund the cause that could bring new hope to the victims.

Allen Lee

Written by Allen Lee

Allen Lee is a Toronto-based freelance writer who studied business in school but has since turned to other pursuits. He spends more time than is perhaps wise with his eyes fixed on a screen either reading history books, keeping up with international news, or playing the latest releases on the Steam platform, which serve as the subject matter for much of his writing output. Currently, Lee is practicing the smidgen of Chinese that he picked up while visiting the Chinese mainland in hopes of someday being able to read certain historical texts in their original language.

Read more posts by Allen Lee

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