Boone

T Boone Pickens was a self-made Texas oil tycoon, energy entrepreneur, and long-time resident of Dallas. He most recently was the chairman and CEO of BP [Boone Pickens] Capital in Dallas, a hedge fund focused on energy investments. Boone was also the largest shareholder in a company called Clean Energy, which provides natural gas for fleet vehicles such as semi-trucks, taxis, and law enforcement. With a degree in Geology from Oklahoma State University, Pickens started out working for Phillips Petroleum in 1954. It all started for him in 1957, when he founded a company that later became Mesa Petroleum using a $2,500 loan. He led Mesa for 30 years developing it into the largest independent producer of oil and natural gas. In the 1980s, Pickens was known as a "corporate raider" who advocated for shareholder rights. In 1997, Pickens founded BP Capital Management, a hedge fund making investments in the energy sector. In less than a decade, he had earned more than a billion dollars from it. For years, he generously contributed to causes and foundations in North Texas and across the country. His philanthropic impact reached almost $2 billion through innovative matching initiatives, his company said. Thomas Boone Pickens passed away on September 11,2019 at the age of 91.