George Ho Cho-chi 何佐芝 | |
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Born | |
Died | 4 June 2014 | (aged 94)
Other names | Ho Sai Yee (何世義) |
Alma mater | King's College, Hong Kong University of California, Berkeley |
Occupation | Entrepreneur |
Board member of | Commercial Radio Hong Kong |
Children | 1 |
Parent | Robert Hotung |
George Ho Cho-chi | |||||||||||||||
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Chinese | 何佐芝 | ||||||||||||||
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George Ho Cho-chi, GBS, OBE, JP (3 November 1919 – 4 June 2014) was a Hong Kong media mogul. The fifth son of the influential businessman Robert Hotung,[1] George Ho was the founder of the Commercial Radio Hong Kong and Commercial Television.[1]
George Ho was the illegitimate son of Robert Hotung, then the most influential Eurasian compradore in Hong Kong, and Kate Archer. George was bequeathed a substantial amount of money directly and indirectly.[2] His grandfather through Robert Hotung was a Jewish Dutch man Charles Henry Maurice Bosman.[3] George Ho studied at King's College, Hong Kong[4] and the University of California, Berkeley.[5][6][7]
Instead of joining the family flagship company, George Ho founded his own business, Commercial Radio Hong Kong by obtaining a radio broadcasting licence through the connections and HK$50,000 inheritance from his father. George Ho gradually became an influential tycoon in the colony.[2] He branched out into television, founding Commercial Television in 1975. But the station closed three years later.[4]
He had also been director of Jardine Matheson Holdings, Hongkong Land and Bank of East Asia.
In 2001, George Ho was awarded a Gold Bauhinia Star for his contribution to society.[4]
His son, George Joseph Ho, succeeded him as chairman of Commercial Radio.