| Body Measurement | – |
| Body type | Athletic |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in |
| Weight | 76 kg |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
| Shoe Size | – |
| Full Name | Terence Thomas Kevin O’Leary |
| Nickname | Mr. Wonderful Uncle Kevin Maple Man |
| Gender | Male |
| Date of Birth | July 9, 1954 |
| Age | 69 Years |
| Profession | Businessman, investor, journalist, television personality |
| Kyle Busch Net Worth | $400 Million |
| Education | University of Waterloo (BES) University of Western Ontario (MBA) |
| Nationality | Canada, United Arab Emirates, Ireland |
| Birthplace | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Hometown | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Religion | Christian |
| Zodiac Sign | Cancer |
| Father | Terry O’Leary |
| Mother | Georgette |
| Spouse | Linda O’Leary |
| Children | 2 |
| Siblings | Shane O’Leary |
| Personal website | Official website |
| IMDb | Kevin O’Leary |
| twitter.com/kevinolearytv | |
| instagram.com/kevinolearytv/ |
Childhood & Early Life
O’Leary was born on 9 July 1954, in Montreal, one of two sons of Georgette (née Bukalam), a small-business owner and investor of Lebanese descent, and Terry O’Leary, a salesman of Irish descent.
Kevin also has one brother, whose name is Shane O’Leary. Due to his paternal heritage, O’Leary also holds Irish citizenship and carries an Irish passport. O’Leary had dyslexia which he argued helped him in the world of business.
O’Leary was raised in the Quebec town of Mount Royal. His father’s drinking was a major factor in his parents’ divorce when he was a little boy.
Not long thereafter, at the age of seven, O’Leary’s father passed away. His mother served as an executive in the family’s apparel company after the death of his father.
Afterwards, his mother wed George Kanawaty, an economist who was employed by the International Labour Organisation of the UN.
Due to his stepfather’s overseas postings, O’Leary’s family moved about a lot when he was growing up, living in Tunisia, Ethiopia, Cambodia, and Cyprus, among other countries.
He had met both Pol Pot of Cambodia and Haile Selassie of Ethiopia when he was younger. O’Leary went to St. George’s School and Stanstead College in Quebec.
O’Leary’s mother was an accomplished investor who placed a third of her weekly paycheck into interest-bearing bonds and large-cap, dividend-paying equities, which helped her portfolio earn impressive returns.
O’Leary only learned about his mother’s aptitude for investing after she passed away, when her will was carried out, since she kept her investment portfolio a secret.
His mother taught him a lot about investing, one of which was to set aside one-third of his income.
O’Leary had intended to become a photographer, but he went to college instead, encouraged by his stepfather, where he pursued his interest in finance and investment.
He graduated with honors from the University of Waterloo in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and environmental studies, and in 1980, the University of Western Ontario’s Ivey Business School awarded him an MBA in entrepreneurship.
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Career
He began his work as an intern at a Toronto firm called “Nabisco” while he was getting his MBA. He was then elevated to the role of assistant brand manager for the cat food division of the business.
Later, Kevin said that “Nabisco” had taught him a lot and helped him make some wise choices when he first launched his own business.
Kevin began his employment search after receiving his MBA. Along with Dave Toms and Scott Mackenzie, two of his MBA classmates, Kevin embarked on a short career as TV producers.
The three of them established Special Event Television (SET), a sports broadcasting firm, at some point after.
Working on its own, the firm televised important athletic events including “The Original Six” and “Hockey Legends.”
Along with low-budget TV series, the studio produced documentaries on sports, including football. But Kevin had higher goals in mind. He gave one of his partners his share of the business and went out on his own to start his own venture.
In the mid-1980s, the popularity of computers had only begun to grow. In 1986, Kevin took advantage of the chance to launch his own software product business, SoftKey.
Along with Gary Babcock and John Freeman, he created the business. It was the pioneer Canadian business to apply the consumer products model to the computer software sector.
The need for software increased as more and more households purchased computers as they became more affordable in the next years. “SoftKey” produced and marketed entertainment and instructional software.
The business grew significantly by the late 1980s. A number of other businesses began using the same business plan, but Kevin’s astute business acumen crushed all of the opposition.
The businesses that fiercely competed with “SoftKey” were ultimately taken over by the business. Early in the 1990s, “SoftKey” purchased Wordstar and Spinnaker Software, two of its main rivals.
A significant announcement was made in 1995 by “SoftKey” about the acquisition of “The Learning Company” for an astounding $606 million. The Learning Company was the new name for “SoftKey.”
Its US headquarters are now located in Massachusetts. Nevertheless, the transaction resulted in significant losses for the business.
Kevin gave the business to the toy manufacturer “Mattel” in 1999. When ‘Mattel’ began to record significant losses as well, Kevin departed the company. The purchase agreement, which cost an incredible $4.2 billion, was subsequently dubbed one of the worst corporate transactions in recent memory.
Kevin had intended to buy “Atari,” the company that makes video games, in the middle of the 2000s, but the agreement fell through. Rather, in 2003 he joined “StorageNow Holdings” as an active director and co-investor.
He had paid almost half a million dollars for the shares. Four years later, he sold them for $4.5 million. He established “O’Leary Funds,” a mutual fund business, in 2008.
Kevin is the company’s chairman and chief investor, while his brother Shane holds the position of director. While making investments in a few other businesses and funds, Kevin amassed a sizable fortune.
Kevin debuted on television in 2006 on the Canadian program “Dragons’ Den.” The show’s unique premise allowed participants to present their ideas to venture investors.
Among the venture investors in the episode was Kevin. He presented a stern and uncompromising image.
Kevin made an appearance in 2009 as a judge on the American version of “Dragons’ Den,” which went by the name “Shark Tank.” 2014 saw Kevin depart the program. He had an appearance on the Discovery Channel show “Project Earth” in 2008.
2011 saw the release of his first book, “Cold Hard Truth: On Business, Money & Life.” In two further books that were published as successors to the first, he provided readers with advice on how he handled other facets of life, including business, education, and careers.
In 2017, Kevin also dabbled in politics by running for the position of “Conservative Party of Canada” leader. He did, however, withdraw from the elections, citing Quebec’s lack of support.
Major Works
O’Leary has said that he is often referred to as “Mr. Wonderful” in public, thanks to his appearances on Shark Tank and Dragons’ Den.
O’Leary co-hosted the Discovery Channel program Discovery Project Earth in 2008, which looked at creative methods to stop climate change.
O’Leary started making appearances on CBC News Network’s The Lang and O’Leary Exchange in 2009 with journalist Amanda Lang.
On a 2011 episode of The Lang & O’Leary Exchange, O’Leary attacked Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Chris Hedges for sounding “like a left-wing nutbar.” Hedges was discussing the Occupy Wall Street rallies.
At the 2009 Savings & Groans gala, which he presented for the Winnipeg Comedy Festival, O’Leary played a spoof akin to Dragon’s Den in which Sean Cullen and Ron Sparks attempted to persuade him to invest in their invention, the wheel. The programme debuted in 2010 on CBC.
O’Leary made an appearance on CNBC’s Money Court in 2021 with Katie Phang and Ada Pozo, where they resolved financial issues.
He presently sits on the Board of Advisors of ARHT Media, together with Paul Anka and Carlos Slim.
books
- The Hard Truth: Regarding Finances, Business, and Life (2011)
- The Hard Truth about Men, Women, and Money: 50 Typical Financial Errors and Their Fixes (2012)
- The Hard Truth about Finances, Kids, and Families (2015)
- Part Two of Cold Hard Truth on Family, Kids, and Money (2015) discusses marriage and money.
- Digital Turnaround or Post-Burst COVID-19 World: The Need for Small Businesses to Rethink Everything in Order to Succeed!In 2020
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Awards and Achievements
| Year | Award won |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Emmy-Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program: Nominated |
| 2021 | Emmy-Outstanding Structured Reality Program: Nominated |
| 2020 | Emmy-Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program: Nominated |
| 2020 | Emmy-Outstanding Structured Reality Program: Nominated |
Kevin O’Leary Net Worth
Terence Thomas Kevin O’Leary, AKA Mr. Wonderful, the razor-sharp Canadian businessman, investor, and TV celebrity, boasts a $400 million net worth.
According to research, most of Kevin O’Leary’s personal wealth is likely derived from Mattel’s purchase of TLC in 1999. StorageNow Holdings was sold for $110 million in 2007, and later its founding proved fruitful as it was sold.
Controversy
After releasing a divisive post on Twitter over the weekend, Kevin O’Leary has found himself in hot water with sharks.
Mr. Wonderful, nevertheless, is not going to give up. Conversely, he has made appearances on a number of news programs in recent days, where he has defended his claim and retaliated against his detractors.
“You may lose your wife, you may lose your dog, and your mother may hate you,” tweeted O’Leary early on Saturday morning, sparking the controversy. All those things are irrelevant. What counts is that you succeed and get your freedom. You are then free to behave as you like.”
Twitter users took issue with O’Leary’s no-holds-barred stance, believing it to be devoid of empathy and compassion.
“Kevin, this is a soulless tweet!” tweeted @MasonVersluis on Twitter. You’ve achieved great success by being soulless, but now you need to connect with your higher self and put the money aside! I hope you are aware of who you are and haven’t confused your brand with a person.”
This Thursday, O’Leary, who never met a situation he couldn’t publicize, defended his stance on television.
He told CNN that he still believes in his tweet, which said that becoming an entrepreneur requires a great deal of sacrifice.
You understand precisely what I mean if you’re an entrepreneur because you have to make sacrifices. You have to put in twenty-five hours a day, seven days a week, because your rivals in Shanghai or Mumbai want to kick you in the butt.
To secure independence for your whole family later in life, you must triumph while you’re still young and make all the necessary sacrifices,” he said.
O’Leary chastised his detractors for failing to grasp the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. He remarked, “Don’t worry about it if you don’t get it because you don’t fit the entrepreneurial mold.”
“Get over it if it makes you uncomfortable; if you’re not willing to put in a lot of labor, you’re not an entrepreneur. I don’t give a damn.”
O’Leary reiterated his position on Fox News, stating, “You are not an entrepreneur if that statement makes you uncomfortable.” Never even try.
10 things you didn’t know about Kevin O’Leary!
FAQs
– What is the investing philosophies of Kevin O’Leary?
O’Leary is renowned for his pragmatist and profit-driven approach to investing. He places a strong emphasis on profitability and often requests a cut of the business’s earnings in his transactions.
– Has Kevin O’Leary made an attempt to enter politics?
Indeed, Kevin O’Leary made a short campaign for the Conservative Party of Canada leadership in 2017. But he withdrew from the contest before to the count.
– Which novels by Kevin O’Leary are particularly noteworthy?
Among his publications are “Cold Hard Truth: On Business, Money & Life,” “The Cold Hard Truth on Men, Women, and Money,” and “Cold Hard Truth on Family, Kids, and Money.” Kevin O’Leary is also a writer.
– What charitable endeavours does Kevin O’Leary engage in?
Kevin O’Leary has participated in a number of charity endeavours, such as giving to nonprofits and endorsing projects that promote entrepreneurship and education.
