Seymour Milstein

"[8] In 1964, they completed their first large real estate development, the 34-story, 680-unit Dorchester Towers on the Upper West Side.

[10] In 1974, the Milsteins entered the mining and energy sectors,[11] acquiring United Brands, the parent company of Chiquita Bananas,[11] after the suicide of its owner Eli M.

[5] In 1981, the Milsteins stripped the New York Biltmore Hotel down to its steel structure and reclad the frame in granite, despite the building's landmark status and concerted protests by preservationists, in order to fashion a new headquarters for Bank of America.

[13][11] In 1986, they founded Liberty Cable Co.[11] In 1989, the Milstein family acquired Douglas Elliman-Gibbons & Ives residential real estate brokerage from Edwin J. Gould and Lawrence O.

His nephew, Howard Milstein served as Chairman for ten years and built the brand to a 40% share of the brokerage market and over 50,000 apartments managed.

[8] This led to a deterioration of the relationship between the two elder brothers, eventually leading to litigation and the unwinding of their long business partnership.

[8] Through various family controlled entities, the Milsteins built or bought residential properties with more than 50,000 apartments, 8,000 hotel rooms and 20,000,000 square feet (1,900,000 m2) of office space.

Milstein's interest in fostering continued investigations in this emerging field, and his family's tradition of support for organizations dedicated to patient care and scientific research, motivated him and his wife Vivian to establish The Milstein Awards in 1988, two years after interferon was first approved for the treatment of hairy cell leukemia.