Bruce and Lilly Tartikoff Karatz
/NET WORTH: Unknown
SOURCE OF WEALTH: KB Homes
FUNDING AREAS: Education & Youth, Health, Arts & Culture
OVERVIEW: Bruce Karatz and family move their philanthropy through the Bruce Karatz Family Foundation, which appears to have paused grantmaking activities in the late 2010s. Giving focused on Southern California. Karatz is married to Lilly Tartikoff, a cancer activist who co-founded the Revlon Run/Walk events in New York and Los Angeles.
BACKGROUND: Bruce Karatz was born into a middle-class Jewish family in Chicago in 1945. After graduating from Boston University and the University of Southern California, he worked as associate general counsel for Kaufman & Broad. He rose through the ranks, becoming CEO. The Southern California-based home building company eventually transformed into a Fortune 500 company known as KB Home
ISSUES:
EDUCATION & YOUTH: In the wake of the 1992 Los Angeles riots, Karatz and Kaufman & Broad helped spearhead the effort to rebuild Camp Hollywoodland for inner-city youth. Support has gone to Millbrook School in New York, where Karatz's son Theodore graduated and sits on the board. Crossroads School is a grantee.
HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES: Cancer activist Lilly Tartikoff co-founded the Revlon Run/Walk events in New York and Los Angeles. She has raised over $80 million for cancer research through her efforts. Via the Bruce Karatz Family Foundation, the family has supported Phoenix House and Homeboy Industries. Beyond Southern California, Karatz and KB Home supported rebuilding efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.
ARTS & CULTURE: Grantees include Desert Exhibition of Art, MOCA, and LA Theatre Works.
OTHER: Support has gone to Jewish outfits, including Wilshire Boulevard Temple. Six-figure sums have gone to California Community Foundation recently.
LOOKING FORWARD: Karatz’s philanthropic foundation has been inactive in recent years, and it is unclear what form his future philanthropic endeavors may take.
CONTACT:
Bruce Karatz Family Foundation
355 S. Grand Ave., Suite 1710
Los Angels, CA 90071
(213) 683-8790
