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Kennedy WilliamJIII Biography

American black proprietor and financier. He became interested in the insurance industry at the age of nine when working for an uncle, also in the insurance profession. William earned a B.S. in 1942, joined the Army and served in WW II, and achieved an M.B.A. in 1946 and 1948. He became an insurance agent in 1950, learning his way up to President and Chairman of the Board. He founded the insurance company, North Carolina Mutual, and became the first black owned company to attain $1 billion of insurance. By 1983, he had an annual income of more than $73 million and assets of $200 million. Married, he had one son. Read less