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Sep 25, 2007

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." --Harry S. Truman

The Billionaire Who Wasn't

He wears a $15 watch, flies economy class and does not own a house or car. For years. few guessed that Chuck Feeney was one of the world's biggest philanthropists, secretly giving away his fortune. Born in New Jersey during the Depression, Feeney co-founded the world's largest duty-free retail chain. He liked making money but not having it, and gave it away for years in strict secrecy. Conor O'Clery's new book "The Billionaire Who Wasn't: How Chuck Feeney Secretly Made and Gave Away a Fortune" tells the fascinating story of this man's life. Now in his mid 70's, Feeney is determined that his foundation should spend its remaining fortune in his lifetime and is fond of a Gaelic proverb to explain the sense of urgency: "There are no pockets in a shroud."