Ronald Leon Rakow

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Ronald Leon Rakow or Ron Rakow was the head of Grateful Dead Records and Round Records, and was manager of The Grateful Dead.[1][2]

Ronald Leon Rakow
Ron Rakow
Ron Rakow.jpg
Born~1938
New York City
Other names"Cadillac Ron"
EducationBachelor of Science
Alma materNew York University

Early life[]

Ron was born in Brooklyn, New York. He studied Economics at New York University where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree. He started his career as a runner on the New York Stock exchange floor and eventually was an arbitrageur and did corporate mergers and acquisitions for various corporations in New York City.[3]

Grateful Dead[]

Ron Rakow on the steps at 710 Ashbury in San Francisco with Phil Lesh and Jerry Garcia in the background.

Around 1965 Ron moved to San Francisco and started a small loans business called Guaranteed Factors. Not long after, he loaned money to the Grateful Dead to buy equipment and quickly joined as a photographer and later the band manager.[3] During that time, he lived across from the street from the band at 715 Ashbury street.[4]

In March 1972, Ron came up with the idea for Grateful Dead Records and Round Records and worked with Jerry Garcia to develop the business plan known as the 'So What Papers'. In July 1972, he was invited to Bill Kreutzmann's house to present the initial idea to the band. In April 1973, the plan was finally approved and Grateful Dead Records and Round Records was born. The labels went on to produce four of the bands records between 1973-1976.

Filmography[]

Ron was also the executive producer and appears in the 1977 documentary film, The Grateful Dead Movie.

Legal Troubles[]

On April 11, 2007, Rakow was sentenced to five years in federal prison for tax evasion of $2.2 million since 1985 from income unrelated to his relationship with The Grateful Dead.[5][6]' On December 1, 2011, Rakow was released from prison.

References[]

  1. ^ Applegate, Jane (1985-09-12). "U.S. Indicts 12 in Cosmetic Scheme $80-Million Culture-Growing Project Had 27,000 Investors".
  2. ^ "Reed Slatkin Media Resource".
  3. ^ a b "16 Aug 1974, Page 14 - Daily Independent Journal at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  4. ^ Sf_daily_photo (2016-10-26). "SAN FRANCISCO DAILY PHOTO: 715 Ashbury St, Haight Ashbury". SAN FRANCISCO DAILY PHOTO. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  5. ^ http://www.relix.com/Features/Daily_News/Former_Grateful_Dead_Records_President_Ron_Rakow_Sentenced_For_Tax_Evasion_200704112235.html
  6. ^ "Ex-Grateful Dead Manager Sentenced". Fox News. 2007-04-11.
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