Billionaire Eli Broad, who reshaped Los Angeles' landscape, dead at 87

In this Sept. 16, 2015 file photo Eli Broad poses for a photo at his museum, "The Broad" in downtown Los Angeles.

AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File

• Businessman and philanthropist Eli Broad died Friday at the age of 87 after a lengthy illness.
• The self-made billionaire helped shape the city of Los Angeles, building museums and funding cultural institutions.
• Broad built two Fortune 500 companies during his lifetime, and Forbes estimated his fortune at $6.9 billion.
• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Eli Broad, a philanthropist and self-made billionaire who used his fortune to reshape the culture of the city of Los Angeles, died Friday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at the age of 87.

Broad built two Fortune 500 companies during his life and played a role in funding and shaping institutions like the Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art. The businessman went on to build his own museum in the heart of LA, a city he loved and helped make a cultural capital.

A spokeswoman for the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation told The New York Times his death came after a lengthy illness.

The New York native chose California as his home and found massive success in the home construction and insurance industries. Forbes estimated his fortune at $6.9 billion.

"There's no curtain you can't get through in Los Angeles - no religious curtain, no curtain about where you came from," Mr. Broad told The Times in 2001. "It's a meritocracy, unlike some other cities. If you have ideas here, if you have energy, you'll be accepted. I love LA."

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