Latest news with #Whitesell
USA Today
14 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
Lauren Sánchez's first husband: Who is Patrick Whitesell?
Billionaire and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is set to tie the knot with Lauren Sánchez this week during an extravagant, Italian wedding of which details have been reserved. Prior to her engagement with Bezos, Sánchez was married to media giant Patrick Whitesell. The former couple, who share two children, were married from 2005 to 2019. Whitesell has since remarried. Bezos and Sánchez, who have been engaged since 2019, are expected to tie the knot in Venice, Italy between June 26 and 28, Reuters and The New York Times have reported. As the highly-anticipated wedding gets underway, here's a look back at Sánchez's former partner. Everything we know so far: Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's wedding Who is Patrick Whitesell? Whitesell is a businessman that has worked in the media industry for more than three decades. He made a name for himself in the early 2000s when he teamed up with former WWE owner Ari Emanuel to take over Endeavor, an international sports and entertainment company. However, in March, Whitesell took a $25 billion deal from international tech investor Silver Lake to leave Endeavor. Following the sale, Whitesell has begun running Win Sports Group, an NFL sports management company, and a "sports, media and entertainment" investment platform backed by Silver Lake, according to a news release. Prior to Endeavor, Whitesell worked at InterTalent, United Talent Agency and Creative Artists Agency. Over the years, he has worked with celebrities like Ben Affleck, Christian Bale, Whoopi Goldberg, Hugh Jackman and Joaquin Phoenix. How old is Patrick Whitesell? Whitesell is 60 years old. When did Lauren Sánchez and Patrick Whitesell get divorced? Sánchez and Whitesell divorced in 2019. How many children do Lauren Sánchez, Patrick Whitesell share? Sánchez and Whitesell have two children together: Ella Whitesell and Evan Whitesell. Evan was born in 2006 and Ella was born in 2008, People reported. Who is Patrick Whitesell married to now? Whitesell married actress and model Pia Miller in 2021. The 41-year-old, hailing from Chile, gained prominence after winning an annual modeling competition for Australian beauty magazine Dolly in 1998. She also competed on the Australian reality television series, "Search for a Supermodel" in 2001. Contributing: Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@
Chicago Tribune
08-04-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Will County man declared National Direct Support Professional of the Year
Being a chef was Mickey Whitesell's dream job until he started working at Trinity Services with people who have special needs. His passion for the job recently earned him the distinction of being the National Direct Support Professional of the Year by the American Network of Community Options and Resources. He will be honored April 9th at the ANCOR Connect 2025 Conference in San Diego. Whitesell, who lives in Elwood, not far from where he grew up in Manhattan, was chosen for the award from more than 500 nominees. 'He's very humble and patient, and he's creative,' said Stephanie Behlke Leigh, network director for Trinity Services, who nominated Whitesell. 'What sets him apart is he has a huge heart and he is deeply committed every day to providing people of all ability levels, who are going through all types of struggles, a way to connect with the things that are important to him.' As a direct support professional at Studio 22 in New Lenox, which provides community day services, Whitesell works with dozens of people with intellectual disabilities and/or mental illness, helping them with advocations such as food preparation, brewing pop and specialty colas, gardening, creative writing and sound recording. He also helps with activities such as trips to movies, farmer's markets, the park and fishing. He uses 'positive psychology' to support the people he works with and 'bring joy and meaning to their lives,' explained Leigh. Leigh said letters of support for Whitesell stressed 'how much he's helped them make the changes in their lives that are important to them.' But for Whitesell it's more than just a job. He gets a good feeling from helping participants and even when they can be a challenge, he finds a way to help. 'If someone has problems, I have to listen better … you try to figure out why, if they are sick or sad or just having a bad morning,' he said. 'If they're hungry, they may get upset or if I can figure it out, I can say, 'Okay, it's going to get better, try to think of a happy thought.' If they're angry at someone, I try to take them away and redirect,' said Whitesell. His 15 years spent as a chef in Joliet helped prepare him for the job because special needs students from a local high school sometimes came to practice life skills, such as setting the table for customers, doing dishes or getting ice from the bar. He changed careers amid the pandemic, when there was no longer much of a call for chefs. 'Honestly I just kind of fell into it,' he said of the career change. 'I fell in love with it.' 'They're all their own personalities, some of the nicest people I've ever met. They're so caring and really do want to learn to do better.' That also makes Whitesell want to keep coming back and improve his skills. He said the weeklong training for the job included CPR, learning different teaching techniques and mulling over instructions for the interactions he would have with people. There's also yearly retraining for the job. He still gets to cook, too, after work but also when teaching the attendees, who range in age from their 20s to their 70s. 'People are always looking up to you,' he said. 'It's their reactions when they're happy, when they're like 'Thank you so much' or come and give you a big hug,' Whitesell said. Whitesell said he was surprised when he learned he was getting the award. 'I thought it was a joke or maybe they just drew my name out of a hat,' said Whitesell. 'Then when it hit me, it was very overwhelming and I was super gracious.'
Axios
27-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions raises series B from Patrick Whitesell and Silver Lake
Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions has raised a new financing round from former Endeavor executive chairman Patrick Whitesell, who is leading a new, yet-to-be named sports, media and entertainment investment platform with private equity giant Silver Lake. Why it matters: Omaha Productions has been profitable since it launched in 2020. Manning still controls the company, but has been bringing on strategic investors to help grow the business faster. By the numbers: Last year, Omaha raised $10 million from Peter Chernin's North Road Company at a valuation topping $400 million. The new raise from Whitesell, which is also structured as a minority equity investment, is significantly largely than the amount raised previously, a source told Axios. Zoom in: The new funds will be used to expand Omaha Productions' existing business producing content for consumers and brands, while also moving further into newer areas, including scripted content and investing. The company recently announced an investment in Good Good Golf, a creator-led golf and lifestyle company. Whitesell, one of Hollywood's top talent executives, has ample experience in the scripted content space. All of the content produced by Omaha Productions centers around the core value of bringing people together. Much of the content produced by the company is as much about sports lifestyle as it is about the games themselves. Between the lines: North Road will continue to be a minority investor in Omaha Productions, which it has worked with to produce a variety of series. Zoom out: Manning co-founded Omaha Productions in 2020 with longtime sports media executive Jamie Horowitz. While the company is best known for its hit ESPN show "ManningCast," its production empire has grown much broader over the past few years. Omaha Productions has produced and sold over 30 television shows and movies, and scripted and unscripted series to an array of TV networks and streaming services. It's won multiple awards for its content, including multiple sports Emmys for "ManningCast." The company has also developed a sizable branded content business and audio division that features ESPN talent such as Scott Van Pelt and Mina Kimes. Context: Silver Lake took Endeavor private in a $25 billion deal Monday. As part of the deal, Whitesell officially stepped into his new role as CEO of the new investment platform that Silver Lake is backing with $250 million. The Omaha Productions deal is his first investment as part of the new platform. Whitesell has been with Endeavor for nearly 25 years. He has worked in the talent business for more than three decades. In that time, he has grown his client roster to include some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Ben Affleck, Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds. In addition to the investment platform, Whitesell also runs an NFL sports management company that he spun off from Endeavor as WME Football. The bottom line:"All of us at Omaha are excited to get to work with Patrick and Egon as our new teammates to grow the business and create new opportunities for fans," Manning said.
