Gordon Getty
Category: Billionaires
Company: Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation.
Industry: Venture Capitalism
What Makes Him Haute: This Haute Living San Francisco cover feature is the son of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. Among a variety of professions, Getty is a classical music composer. His unmatched eye for sound investments ultimately led to the creation of one of the region’s most celebrated wine brands—PlumpJack, whose latest venture is CADE Winery. The Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation, which he runs with his wife, gives generously to music programs (underwriting programs of the San Francisco Opera and the San Francisco Symphony), and Gordon is noted as one of the nation’s most generous philanthropists.
Vanessa Getty
Category: Socialites
Industry: Philanthropy
What Makes Her Haute: She married into the Getty family fame with her 1999 nuptials to Bill Getty in Napa Valley. Vanessa Getty is beautiful and sophisticated and for many years was hailed as the queen of San Francisco’s charity circuit. She still is a leader in high society, only now she shares her throne with other San Francisco socialites. For a glimpse of how high her reach extends, she co-chaired the highly anticipated re-opening of the Chanel boutique on Maiden Lane last November, an event that had connoisseurs of the luxury lifestyle coming out in droves.
Richard Goldman
Category: Philanthropists
Company: Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund
Industry: Philanthropy
What Makes Him Haute: Amassing wealth and then using it to save the world is what makes Richard Goldman one haute philanthropist. 2009 marked the 20th anniversary of the Goldman Environmental Prize, and Al Gore came to San Francisco on Earth Day to award the six recipients with this top honor that recognizes activists for significant efforts to protect the environment, often at great personal risk. Each winner receives an award of $150,000, the largest award in the world for grassroots environmentalists.
Denise Hale
Category: Socialites
What Makes Her Haute: Born as Danica (Dusica) Radosavljevic in Serbia, Hale has been one of the Grande Dames of society since long before today’s leading ladies were fantasizing about the designs of their debutante gowns. In fact, she may have taught today’s charity circuit queens a thing or two about how to rule. Ann Getty, Nancy Pelosi, and Michael Tilson Thomas are at the top of her list of favorite friends, while her husbands have included a wealthy Italian businessman, film director Vincente Minnelli, and Prentis Cobb Hale, the department-store mogul and a staple of San Francisco high society in his own right. She has an art collection that belongs in museums, and a wardrobe that does as well—she is often included on international best-dressed lists.
Alexandra & Brian Hall
Category: Power Couples
Company: Airship Ventures
Industry: Aerospace
What Makes Them Haute: The Halls founded Airship Ventures, the first firm to offer public blimp rides (for around $500 per hour) in 2008 with $8 million in funding. Their customers can experience the Bay Area from a few hundred feet up in a quiet, luxury environment.
H. William Harlan
Category: Entrepreneurs
Company: Harlan Estate, Meadowood Napa Valley, BOND Estates
Industry: Wine and Hospitality
What Makes Him Haute: He is one of the most respected men in Napa Valley. The former real estate developer came to Napa Valley in search of the ideal land to create a world-class wine, and discovered Meadowood, which was founded in 1964 as a private club. While it wasn’t what he was looking for in a winery, he saw potential for the property to become a center for life in Napa Valley, which he created. He continued his quest for the perfect plot for his winery and found it in a hillside estate in Oakville, now home to Harlan Estate, which has never produced more than 2,000 cases in a year, making it a cult classic. His latest venture, BOND Estates, is a portfolio of wines from various vineyard sites across Napa Valley that represent the very best of Napa Valley, as does Harlan himself.
William Randolph Hearst III
Category: Billionaires
Company: Hearst Corporation
Industry: Media
What Makes Him Haute: There is little that can be said about the background of William Randolph Hearst—the first, second, and third—that has not been covered countless time already. William III is haute because the Hearst family name is an undying part of American history books. His grandfather was a publishing legend and his father was a U.S. Senator who became owner of the San Francisco Examiner thanks to a lucky hand of poker. He is one of the anointed few that are affiliated with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, which he joined in 1995. For the decade before that, he spent his days as the editor and publisher of the Examiner.
John Hummer
Category: Entrepreneurs
Company: Hummer Winblad Venture Partners
Industry: Venture Capitalism
What Makes Him Haute: A six-year stint in the NBA put John Hummer in the spotlight at an early age. After retiring from the Seattle Supersonics in 1976, he did not shy away from the splendors of success. In 1982, he found his next profession: venture capitalism. In 1989, he partnered with Ann Winblad and Mark Gorenberg to start up Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, which invests solely in software companies.
Sallie Huntting
Category: Socialites
Company: Academy of Art University
Industry: Public Relations
What Makes Her Haute: She has worn many hats throughout her lifetime, all of them from luxury labels, we’re sure. Huntting, daughter of one of IBM’s original engineers, has modeled, produced fashion events, and taught at the Academy of Art University before moving on to work as its executive vice president of public relations, at the request of Dr. Elisa Stephens. Oh, and don’t forget about her philanthropic efforts, chairing more than 45 fundraising events like Opera Ball and the Junior League Fashion Show.
Jess Jackson
Category: Billionaires
Company: Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates
Industry: Wine
What Makes Him Haute: Jess Jackson, of the Sonoma County wine label, released his first wine in 1982 and forged a path of success that resulted in a billion-dollar business, with sales of the Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay racking up to two million cases annually. Stealing Jackson’s attention as of late has been his award-winning racehorse Rachel Alexandra, the “Reigning Horse of the Year.” She is scheduled to square off against Zenyatta, an undefeated mare, for a $5 million purse.
