Hiroshi Yamauchi
Hiroshi Yamauchi (山内溥, Yamauchi Hiroshi, 7 November 1927 – 19 September 2013) was a Japanese businessman and the third president of Nintendo, joining the company on 25 April 1949 until stepping down on 24 May 2002, being subsequently succeeded by Satoru Iwata. During his 53-year tenure, Yamauchi transformed Nintendo from a hanafuda card-making company that had been active solely in Japan into a multibillion-dollar video game publisher and global conglomerate. He was the great-grandson of Fusajiro Yamauchi, Nintendo's first president and founder. Hiroshi Yamauchi owned the Seattle Mariners baseball team from 1992 until his death.
Hiroshi Yamauchi | |
|---|---|
山内溥 | |
Yamauchi c. 1949 | |
| 3rd President of Nintendo | |
| In office 25 April 1949 – 24 May 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Sekiryo Kaneda |
| Succeeded by | Satoru Iwata |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 November 1927 Kyoto, Empire of Japan |
| Died | 19 September 2013 (aged 85) Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan |
| Cause of death | Pneumonia |
| Spouse |
Michiko Inaba
(m. 1945; died 2012) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Waseda University |
| Occupation | President and chairman of Nintendo (1949–2002) |
In April 2013, Forbes estimated Yamauchi's net worth at $2.1 billion; he was the 13th richest person in Japan and the 491st richest in the world. In 2008, Yamauchi was Japan's wealthiest person with a fortune at that time estimated at $7.8 billion. At the time of his death, Yamauchi was the largest shareholder at Nintendo.