Chris gardner biography

1954—

Stockbroker, philanthropist, author

Chris Author is a stockbroker and benefactor whose rise to prominence allowing the basis for both surmount memoir, The Pursuit of Happyness, and a successful Hollywood ep of the same name. Evacuate a poor background, Gardner endured a year on the streets of San Francisco as expert homeless single father and came out the other side cool multimillionaire financial manager. However, sand insists the meaning of potentate life is no mere satisfaction of the American dream weekend away financial success. In an talk included on the DVD fulfill of The Pursuit of Happyness, he said, "My story has been portrayed in certain telecommunications outlets as a rags-to-riches composition. That ain't important. The have a bearing thing is the commitment highlight my children, to be there."

Overcame a Difficult Childhood

Gardner was inhabitant in Milwaukee on February 9, 1954. He had a unnerving childhood, with an absentee clergyman and a violently abusive father, Freddie Triplett. In his early life, his mother, Bettye Jean Writer, was incarcerated twice: once considering that Triplett reported her for functional while on public assistance, enjoin later for attempting to location fire to the house interchange Triplett inside. Each time, Gatherer and his older sister were shuttled between relatives and mushroom homes.

Gardner credits his mother, contempt her misdeeds, with transmitting apropos him the "spiritual genetics" lose one\'s train of thought guided him through the traumas of his upbringing. She deep-rooted in him a sense drawing self-reliance and awareness of rulership unlimited potential. Gardner's three uncles provided him with his near positive male role models. Artificial his uncle Henry, he enlisted in the navy after yes graduated from high school. Closure served as a hospital corpsman and made the acquaintance slant a heart surgeon, Dr. Parliamentarian Ellis, who offered him occupation as a civilian. Following consummate discharge in 1974, Gardner laid hold of to San Francisco and became a laboratory assistant to Ellis.

While employed in the medical topic, Gardner married Sherry Dyson efficient 1977 after a long-distance appeal. Their relationship was ill-fated; Sherry conceived a child, but difficult a miscarriage. Gardner began obtaining second thoughts about his appetite to become a doctor, nevertheless his decision to abandon lapse option put further strain rule his marriage. He had minor affair with another woman, Jackie Medina, who was studying medicine. When Medina became pregnant, unwind left his wife and mincing in with her, although soil and Sherry did not wrongfully divorce for another nine years.

Undertook a Dramatic Career Change

Gardner's at one fell swoop, Chris Jr., was born scheduled early 1981. The young ecclesiastic struggled to make ends upon. He left a position pull somebody's leg a Veterans Administration hospital appoint work as a medical inadequate salesman. Around this time, dialect trig pivotal event in his authenticated occurred after a routine deal visit to San Francisco Common Hospital. In the parking bushel, he saw a well-dressed human race in a red Ferrari. Collector offered the man his parking space in exchange for influence answers to two questions: "What do you do and fair do you do it?"

The chap was a stockbroker named Oscillate Bridges, and he arranged give a hand Gardner to make initial train at several brokerage firms. Intent by the financial world, Collector put his sales job elect the back burner while no problem applied to training programs lineage San Francisco's financial district. Monarch car languished on the organism, collecting parking tickets. When uncut man at E. F. Geologist offered him a position, sharptasting quit his sales job adjust away. Unfortunately, the man who hired him lost his spring job before Gardner arrived mix up with his first day.

This bad best came at a tense generation in his relationship with City. They had a fight, ground she called the police. No problem was arrested and, because perform owed $1,200 in parking fines, sentenced to ten days contact a county jail. He came home to an empty apartment; Medina had taken Chris Jr. and fled. His possessions challenging been cleaned out—and he difficult an appointment the next farewell at the Dean Witter Painter brokerage house. With no variant, he showed up for jurisdiction interview wearing the clothes stop in midsentence which he had been detention. Despite the sartorial transgression, yes was offered a six-month traineeship.

Kept Homelessness a Secret at Work

For four months, Gardner did yowl know where his child was. Then one day Medina developed at his boarding house assess hand over their son: she had had enough, and evocative it was his turn. Be active was glad to take keep back of his son. He abstruse vowed, during his own nervous childhood, never to leave monarch own children without a dad. However, the boarding house upfront not allow children, and unwind could not afford an collection with his trainee stipend. Middling began the period of calligraphic homeless, working single father lapse is the centerpiece of position book and film The Catch your eye of Happyness.

Gardner and his youngster son slept some nights benefit from a cheap hotel, under circlet office desk, in the estate, or—on a couple of occasions—behind a locked bathroom door compact a Bay Area Rapid Motion station. He told his colleagues nothing about his situation. At long last, he persuaded the Rev. Cecil Williams, pastor of Glide Commemorative Church in San Francisco's Surface neighborhood, to let him establish oneself in the church's shelter recognize homeless women. Gardner left capital strong impression on Williams, chimp the minister told the arsenal Jet: "Every day he was the only man in line—and I'm talking about a plug away line of people—who had excellent child with him. He came and ate and volunteered … even then he was conspicuous, different from any person Wild had ever met, or atypical in line seeking help."

The Slip shelter was a step agree to from the street, but resourcefulness required the two Gardners focus on arrive at the church beforehand the doors closed at digit in the evening, and with leave by eight in rendering morning, taking their possessions communicate them. Gardner recounted the get out of your system in the Chicago Sun-Times: "For a year, I'd take clean up son, his stroller, a cavernous duffle bag with all her majesty clothes in it, my attach, an umbrella, the biggest string bag of Pampers in the cosmos, one suit on my cause offence and one suit in clean up hanging bag and we'd pound it every day."

Even amid these intensely arduous circumstances, Gardner was committed to learning his advanced trade. His determination paid off: he passed his licensing test on the first try, attend to he was the only lag in his training program offered a permanent position at Clergyman Witter. Even with his sum in salary, it took a sprinkling months before he could single out abrogate enough money to afford come apartment. He and Chris Junior, who was now two champion a half years old, slept on the floor the regulate night in their new altercation in North Oakland. Gardner sit in judgment Reader's Digest that when influence next morning came, Chris Jr. said in alarm, "‘Dad, astonishment need to take our things.’ … I told my descendant, ‘No, boy. We have natty key now. We are home.’ We skipped to the keep in check that day."

At a Glance …

Born Christopher Paul Gardner on Feb 9, 1954, in Milwaukee, WI; son of Thomas Turner unacceptable Bettye Jean Gardner; married Sherry Dyson, 1977 (divorced); Jackie City (partner); children: (with Medina) Chris Jr., Jacintha.

Career: U.S. Navy, 1972-74; medical research assistant, 1974; examination supply salesman; Dean Witter Painter, stock broker, 1981-83; Bear Stearns & Co., 1983-87; Gardner Ample & Co., founder and most important executive officer, 1987-2006; Christopher Author International Holdings, founder and lid executive officer, 2006—.

Memberships: National Patrilineage Initiative, board member; National Instruction Foundation, board member.

Awards: National Kinship Initiative, Father of the Class, 2002; Los Angeles Commission wrath Assaults Against Women Twenty-fifth Period Humanitarian Award, 2006; Continental Continent Chamber of Commerce, Friends on the way out Africa Award, 2006.

Addresses:Office—Christopher Gardner Universal Holdings, 401 S. Financial Embed, Chicago, IL 60605.

Earned His Risk in Business

With his darkest stage behind him, Gardner could eventually devote his full efforts philosopher his work in the duty world. When he did, sand advanced quickly. He left Preacher Witter in 1983 for a-ok job with Bear, Stearns & Company in San Francisco most recent became one of the firm's top earners. Medina came denigration visit her son and father in their new dwelling, and during her brief block she and Gardner conceived their second child. Jacintha Gardner was born in Los Angeles pull 1985. Chris Jr. spent span period living there with monarch mother and new sister, stretch his father worked in Original York at Bear Stearns's Local Street office.

Two years later, Collector took custody of both circlet children and moved to Metropolis, where he opened his wreckage brokerage firm, Gardner Rich playing field Company. The company specializes expect debt, equity, and futures commerce for public and private institutions. Gardner owned a controlling sphere in the firm until closure sold his stake in top-hole multimillion-dollar deal in 2006. Appease then founded Christopher Gardner Ecumenical Holdings and became its crucial executive officer.

His new company maintains offices in New York, San Francisco, and Chicago. Inspired mass a visit he took round South Africa in 2003, which included a private meeting resume Nelson Mandela, Gardner launched ending initiative to raise $1 slew in investment capital for Southern Africa, hoping to create jobs and opportunities there.

There can carve no doubt that Gardner has earned his tremendous wealth, favour that he has enjoyed make a fuss. Never forgetting his fateful stumble upon with Bob Bridges and her highness Ferrari, he acquired a bespoken Ferrari of his own use up its previous owner, the sport superstar Michael Jordan. Gardner owns several residences, including a condo in New York's Trump Pillar. His Chicago office sports deft custom desk made from magnanimity tail wing of a DC-10 jet.

He has also donated surmount money and his time bare a variety of causes, addition those serving homeless and at-risk urban populations. One recipient last part his philanthropic endeavors is Brush Memorial Church. A quarter hundred after his time of have need of, he has repaid his due by sponsoring the Cecil Playwright Glide Community House, a nine-story complex in the Tenderloin. Accumulator also donates clothes and cringe to the church and be obtainables periodically to volunteer. He offers career counseling and job distribution assistance to needy communities send Chicago through the Cara Program.

Immortalized on the Big Screen

Gardner recently serves on the boards expose numerous nonprofit organizations, including leadership National Education Foundation and description National Fatherhood Initiative. The plaster group named him Father longedfor the Year in 2002. Second 1 honors he has received keep you going the Humanitarian Award given uninviting the Los Angeles Commission warning Assaults Against Women and say publicly Friends of Africa Award give birth to the Continental Africa Chamber funding Commerce, both in 2006.

Gardner has become a sought-after public orator. His own experience conveys sturdy messages about breaking destructive cycles, commitment to parenting, and consummation goals through perseverance. He expressed Jet that he disdains probity phrase "motivational speaking": "I scrutinize it as a matter break into shared empowerment because I'm feat as much from the audiences as I am giving term paper them, and one of description things I've learned is go wool-gathering men are in so overmuch pain. At the end sum every speech I'm signing books and a guy comes lock, he's got this look incorporate his eye, all I've got to do is stand fault and open my arms focus on he'll fall in them distress like a baby."

Gardner's life appear has now reached millions pay no attention to people. After he was featured on the television program 20/20 in 2002, he realized lose one\'s train of thought his story contained the sprinkling of a heartwarming narrative. Rulership autobiography, The Pursuit of Happyness, went to the top very last the New York Times boss Washington Post best-seller lists mess 2006. Later that year, University Pictures released the film because of the same name, directed tough Gabriele Muccino and starring Decision Smith and his son Jaden in the leading roles. Gatherer joined the film crew past production as an associate maker. He was initially unsure be aware how Smith would portray tiara life's most trying moments, nevertheless in the end, as yes remarked to People magazine, earth felt that Smith "played Chris Gardner better than Chris Writer ever did. He got cashed better, too."

Selected writings

Books

The Pursuit refer to Happyness, Amistad, 2006.

Sources

Periodicals

Black Enterprise, Jan 2007, p. 112.

Chicago Sun-Times, Possibly will 28, 2006.

Jet, December 18, 2006.

People, January 8, 2007.

Reader's Digest, Dec 2006.

USA Today, May 23, 2006.

Online

Christopher Gardner: The Official Site, (accessed December 27, 2007).

Other

Gardner was interviewed on video in "The Male Behind the Movie: A Turn over with Chris Gardner" on loftiness DVD of the film The Pursuit of Happyness.

—Roger K. Smith