Rerel-ET|-Et Btheayn RANDINSTITUTE
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rEreL-ET|-Et bTHEAYN RANDINSTITUTE No. 1 The Ayn Rand Institute: The Center for the Advancement of Obiectivism, Los Angeles December 1985 THE INSTITUTEOPENS The Ayn Rand Institute began of the next two years. This operation on February 1, 1985. allowed the Institute to begin. Its formation was due orimarilv to the The commitment of efforts of philosopher Leona.d leikoff, Ayn these Founding Contributors Rand's legal and intellectual heir, and busi- is perhaps a mark of what nessman Ed Snider, owner of the Phila- Ayn Rand advocated in For delphia Flyers and other business enter- the Neut Intellectual: "a prises. Dr. Peikoff provided the intellectual reunion of the twins who foundation, and Mr. Snider provided the should never have been sep- original impetus and the businessexpertise. arated: the intellectualand Both men wanted a basefrom which to ad- the businessman." The Board of Directors: vance the philosophy of Objectivism. After the Institute office Leonard Peikoff (Chairman), Edith Packer, Ed Snider Their basic goals and policies were opened in Los Angeles, a established at a series of meetings during fund-raising campaign was 1984, and a Board of Directors was named: launched,directed to 15,000people, drawn you informed about activities in which you Leonard Peikoff (chairman), Dr. Edith from mailing lists contributed by the Palo may wish to participate-and about the Packer and Ed Snider. Dr. Packer, an Ob- Alto Book Service,The lntellectual Actiaist, spread of Objectivism in general. iectivist since1962. is an attornev and a clin- The Obiectiuist Forum, and the Second We are now seeking to hire a full-time, ical psychologistin private practice.She is RenaissanceBook Service. To date, about professional fund-raiser, in order to secure vice-presidentof the JeffersonSchool of Phi- 2,000 contributors have donated more than our financial future. We will continue to losophy, Economics, and Psychology and a $195.000. Professional fund-raisers have solicit names provided by insert cards in trustee of the Foundation for the New Intel- described this as a "spectacular" Ayn Rand's paperback books. We are also lectual. Dr. Michael S. Berliner was later achievement. investigating other fund-raising pos- appointed full-time Executive Director. We are encouraged that we have the sibilities, such as starting specific proiects Prior to assuming his current position, Dr. kind of moral and financial support which is that are endowed by and named for parti- Berliner was a department chairman at Cali- neededto make the Institute permanent. As cular individuals or businesses.We have fornia State University, Northridge and is a consequence,we have been able to begin studied the possibility of opening an office in also a trustee of the Foundation for the New some prbjectsand to make more ambitious Canada und hope to do this sorietime in the Intellectual. plans - for the future. future. Initially, there were doubts about We have already had to expand the We have a long way to go to accomplish whether business and professional people Institute's office spaceand staff. After only the goals we set when the Institute was would be willing to invest in the unique eight months, the Institute has grown into a formed. And we do not underestimate the enterprise of spreading a philosophy. Such professional organization. difficulty of the task ahead. But we do have a an enterprise would not bring tangible We are now concentrating most of our number of important factors working in our monetary benefit-but could produce major efforts on two particular projects: a high- favor: the enthusiasm and support of intellectual and cultural gains. school essaycontest and the organization of Objectiviststhroughout the world; the intel- These doubts proved incorrect. Obiec- campus clubs (see page 3). We will, of lectual vacuum of a culture that needs a tivists from the U.S. and Canada (seebox course, provide you with detailed infor- rational philosophy more than ever; and, below) contributed more than $135,000and, mation about theseprojects, as well as new most important, the fact that Objectivism is in addition, pledged over $100,000for each projects as they develop. We will also keep that philosophy. We would like to express our gratitude to all those who have contributed to the Institute, and our special thanks to our Founding Contributors, whose early pledges made the Institute possible, and to our Charter and AssociateContributors. Founding Contributors Stuart Daw Charles Key Charter Contributors John I. Aglialoro Tampa Bay, FL Dallas, TX JamesHanrahan Haddonfield, NI Edward Fitzhugh Douglas E. Mayfield, M.D. New York, NY Carl B. Barney Ft. Myers, FL Olney, lL Raymon A. House Los Angeles, CA A. Lawrence Graham Raymond Newman Tampa, FL Harry Binswanger Dartmouth, Noua Scotia Norzaood, Nl Dr. Thomas W. Phillips Neu York. NY Canada Robert R. Prechter, Jr. West Neutton, MA Dr. and Mrs. Robert D. Bugby Walter Grover uatnesotlle, GA Minneapolis, MN Paramount, CA Ed Snider Associate Contributors Thomas (Tom) E. Caldwell Norm Hill Philadelphia. PA John Banning Corpus Christie, TX Nezo York, NY Peter Trnkoczy Sunnyztale,CA Ray Cole The Jefferson School of Toronto, Ontario, Canada Ivan W. Lokey San Francisco,CA Philosophy, Economics, and John C. Warr Camden,DE G.L. Collins Psychology Largo, FL Dallas. TX Laguna Hills, CA Institute Profile: ED SNIDER (A regular feature of the Newsletter usill be Philadelphia for the 1967-68 season. personal profiles of indiuiduals toho are Getting a franchise, however, was de- associated uith the Institute. In this first pendent on building an arena for the team issue, tue want to feature someone usith to play in. The arena, the Spectrum, was tnhom you may be unfamiliar and utho uas constructed under the direction of Snider's instrumental in establishing the lnstitute. long-time friend, Jerry Wolman. But in The following biography is reprinted from March 1968, five months after it was com- the cotserstory of the September 15, 1985 pleted, the Spectrum lost a large piece of its Sunday Morning magazine section of the roof in a storm. And a few months after Worcester (Mass.) Telegram. ln the com- that, the roof fell in on Jerry Wolman's plete article, author Roger Donznay de- financial empire as well. scribed the origin, goals and philosophic With the Spectrum closed, and the base of the Institute.) Flyers playing their "home" games on the Institute Appoints Edward Malcolm Snider, 52, was born road, Snider's fortunes were in disarray. Fellow in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, L933 - But quickly he began to pick up the pieces. First Research just 57 days before Franklin Rooseveltcame The Spectrum was repaired. The team re- The Institute is pleasedto announce to town to change the bases of America eco- turned. Coach Keith Allen was made gen- the appointmentof David Kelley as its first nomic life. Snider's father, Sol Snider, was eral manager. Fred Shero was brought from Senior ResearchFellow. Dr. Kelley will re- employed as a grocery-store worker, even- New York to be coach. In 1971, Snider ceive a grant of $10,000to preparea scho- tually starting his own supermarket chain, bought the Spectrum for himself, and so larly book on the Objectivist theory of Food Town, in L951. entered the entertainment management concepts. The first two parts of this ex- beean his own business business that would eventually lead to published- Ed Snider -taking - -t-e4s!vgst_u{y have already begn cai&r ln feSS ly a degree in ac- Spectacor. Finally, the capstone of Sniderb- in academicjournals. counting at the University of Maryland. comeback fell into place as the Snider- Dr. Kelley, who residesin Millbrook, After becoming a certified public account- Allen-Shero Flyers won back-to-back Stan- N.Y., receivedhis B.A. from Brown Uni- ant, however, Snider worked as an ac- ley Cups in 1974 and 1975. versity in1971andhis Ph.D. in philosophy countant for only one week, quickly decid- At about the same time, someone gave from Princeton University in 1975. He ing that he would rather make money for Snider a copy of Atlas Shrugged. taught for many years at Vassar College himself than keep track of money for For a number of years, Snider had been and is the author of The Eztidenceof the others. disturbed by what his children were being Senses(Louisiana State University Press), His first company, Edge Ltd., was taught in school, and particularly by what scheduled for publication in February, formed in 1957 and is credited with organ- they were being taught about capitalism. 1986.The Instituteis mostpleased that Dr. izing the sale of popular phonograph re- After reading Atlas Shrugged, he says, "l Kelley is undertaking this project, the first cords in supermarkets and discount stores. wrote to Ayn Rand expressing my enthu- of many suchscholarly activitiesby Objec- At the same time, Snider did some public siasm for her work, and saying that I tivist professors to be supported by the relations work for a young builder named thought her philosophy should be taught in Institute. Scholarly writing on Objectivism Jerry Wolman, and it was through this every American college and university." is crucial to its gaining wider academic connection that he came to Philadelphia. With his can-do outlook, Snider also influence. When Wolman bought the Philadelphia thought he could make a start on getting Eagles football team in 7963, Snider joined Objectivism taught in a college. the club as executive vice president. In a recent interview on the cable [TVl Their relation continued for three show Raymond Newman's Journal, Snider years, but football was not to be Snider's told how he went about it: "I started on a NEW YORK TIMES sport. One day in the early 1960s, as the project to try to have a course on Objectiv- story is told, Snider was in Boston on busi- ism taught in the philosophy department at AD TO RUN to see a Celtics game.