Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates and chaired Vulcan Inc., died Monday in Seattle from complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He was 65.
Allen was born in Washington in 1953 where he attended both high school and college, before dropping out of Washington State University in the 1970s to co-found Microsoft with his high school friend Gates. However, Allen would leave the company just eight years later due to a battle with Hodgkin’s disease, which he eventually won.
The Microsoft mogul co-founded Vulcan Productions with his sister Jody in 1997. Vulcan was involved in films including “Far From Heaven,” “Hard Candy,” “Racing Extinction,” “Girl Rising” and most recently, an adaptation of Aoki Higashida’s bestseller “The Reason I Jump,” a documentary about autism.
Allen’s creativity also transferred to the music industry where he released an album with his band the Underthinkers in 2013. Their debut blues-rock album, “Everywhere At Once” features Allen’s electric guitar on several songs including “Straw Into Gold,” “Six Strings From Hell” and “Pictures Of a Dream.” He also takes the guitar solos on “Down Low” and “Big Blue Raindrops.”
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Allen’s other interests were widespread, including professional sports teams, aviation and brain research. Allen owned the Seattle Seahawks and the Portland Trailblazers as well as a minority stake in the Seattle Sounders FC soccer team. Allen also funded SpaceShip-One, the first private aircraft to successfully put a civilian in suborbital space and has invested millions of dollars into the Allen Institute for Brain Science.
Allen’s philanthropy was similarly widespread. The business mogul founded Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture, previously called the Experience Music Project, and has donated more than $1.5 billion to various organizations after becoming one of the first billionaires to join Gates and Warren Buffett’s Giving Pledge in 2010.
He also owned Portland’s Moda Center, Seattle’s Cinerama Theater and London’s Hospital Club, which is planning a Los Angeles branch.
His sister Jody said in a statement to CNBC, he was “a remarkable individual on every level. “While most knew Paul Allen as a technologist and philanthropist, for us he was a much-loved brother and uncle, and an exceptional friend. Paul’s family and friends were blessed to experience his wit, warmth, his generosity and deep concern. For all the demands on his schedule, there was always time for family and friends. At this time of loss and grief for us – and so many others – we are profoundly grateful for the care and concern he demonstrated every day.”
Microsoft issued a statement, saying, “As co-founder of Microsoft, in his own quiet and persistent way, he created magical products, experiences and institutions, and in doing so, he changed the world.”
Allen was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2009 and recently tweeted that it had returned.
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer tweeted, “Paul was a truly wonderful, bright and inspiring person.”