Top 7 Father-Son Business Mogul Pairs

Aug. 15, 2012 — -- intro:The pressures of being the son of a mogul can be many: not being able to choose your own career, expectations to follow in big footsteps, and the suspicion that nepotism is the reason for your success. On the other hand, you could be the son of mega-investor Carl Icahn.

Icahn gave $3 billion to his son, Brett, 32, to manage in investments, according to a legal agreement filed last month with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Here are seven father-son business duos, including the Icahns, building legacies that will likely last at least as long as their money will.

quicklist:category: Financetitle: Carl and Brett Icahn media: 17005811text:

Activist investor Carl Icahn, Forbes' 49th richest person in the world with a net worth of $14 billion, made headlines as an activist parent on Tuesday when it was first reported by Bloomberg Businessweek that he agreed to give $3 billion to a management team that includes his son Brett and a business partner, David Schechter.

Icahn, 76, owns 90 percent of Icahn Enterprises LP, a holding company with $24 billion in assets. In April 2010, the younger Icahn and Schechter were assigned to manage $300 million of Icahn's money. Brett Icahn was hired over a decade ago as an investment analyst.

quicklist:category: Real estatetitle: Donald and Eric Trumpmedia: 17005845 text:

Before Donald Trump was known as "The Donald," he worked at the firm of his father, Fred Trump, a New York City real estate developer who ran Elizabeth Trump & Son. Now Trump, who is known as a television personality but also is chairman and president of real estate development firm, The Trump Organization, has five children of his own, some of whom have dabbled or immersed themselves in the family business.

quicklist: category: Newspaperstitle: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. and Arthur Gregg Sulzbergermedia: 17005898text: The family of Arthur Sulzberger Jr., chairman of the New York Times Company and publisher of The New York Times, has a history of over a century running the times. According to the company website, Adolph S. Ochs acquired controlling ownership of The Times for $75,000 in August 1896. After Ochs died in 1935, his son-in-law, Arthur Hays Sulzberger became publisher in May 1935.

A.O. Sulzberger Jr.'s son, A.G., went to Brown and worked at The Oregonian. He is currently reporting for The New York Times and being groomed to lead the company in the same fashion as his father.

The elder Sulzberger, who just named Mark Thompson, a former executive at the BBC, chief executive of The New York Times Company, has been dealing with tension with his staff and union about foreign staff, pensions and layoffs.

Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Sr. became publisher of the New York Times in 1963, succeeding his father, Arthur Hays Sulzberger and grandfather. It was under his watch that the newspaper published the Pentagon Papers in 1971 about military operations in Vietnam.

quicklist:category: Communicationstitle: Ralph and Brian Robertsmedia: 17005866text:

Ralph Roberts, chairman emeritus of cable and media giant Comcast Corporation, founded the company in Mississippi in 1963. His son, Brian, is currently chairman and CEO of Comcast, which has a 51 percent stake in NBCUniversal with General Electric. Both are Wharton School men who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where Comcast is headquartered.

The younger Roberts is the 70th highest paid CEO according to Forbes, with a compensation package of $18.77 million.

quicklist:category: Mediatitle: Rupert and James Murdochmedia: 17005856text:

Rupert Murdoch's name is synonymous with News Corporation, the media giant that owns 20th Century Fox, Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, and several other publishing properties. His name and that of his son, James, have also become closely associated with a phone hacking scandal that has plagued the company for several years, heightened by the story about a school girl, Milly Dowler, who disappeared in 2002.

Last week, James Murdoch, deputy chief operating officer, made a rare appearance on the company's earnings call. The company reported a grim fourth quarter with a net loss of $1.6 billion, including a $57 million charge for the phone-hacking investigation.

quicklist:category: Finance title: Warren and Howard Graham Buffettmedia: 17005832text:

Last December, Warren Buffet, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, announced that his son, Howard, would be his successor as a "non-executive chairman," an unpaid post.

The younger Buffett is a farmer and philanthropist while his dad is the third richest person in the world with a net worth of $44 billion, according to Forbes.

quicklist:category: Technology, Philanthropytitle: William H. Gates, Sr. and Bill Gatesmedia: 17005822 text:

Bill Gates didn't necessarily get his technical know-how from his father, William, who is a lawyer. But the two have partnered since the start of the younger Bill's career. The elder Gates was reportedly an early investor in Gates' computer innovations.

The two are co-chairs along with Melinda Gates of the largest private foundation in the world, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has an endowment of $33.5 billion as of Sept. 2011.