Dolan was dedicated to his family and his community

HBO and Cablevision founder Charles Dolan dies at 98

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Charles F. Dolan, a trailblazing entrepreneur who transformed the television industry as the founder of Cablevision Systems Corp. and HBO, died on Dec. 28, at age 98.

Dolan was surrounded by family at his home in Cove Neck Village. His family announced his death in a statement, describing him as a “visionary founder” and a devoted husband, father and grandfather.

“Remembered as both a trailblazer in the television industry and a devoted family man, his legacy will live on,” the statement read.

Dolan’s innovations reshaped American media. In 1972 he launched Home Box Office, now known as HBO, as a pay-television channel offering movies and live sports events. The channel became a blueprint for premium television, changing how audiences consumed media. A year later he founded Cablevision, which grew into one of the largest cable companies in the nation.

Dolan also created American Movie Classics, in 1984, and News 12, the first 24-hour cable news channel dedicated to local coverage.

Born on Oct. 16, 1926, in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Charles Francis Dolan was one of four boys raised by their mother, Corinne Henson Dolan, after their father died of cancer. Dolan showed early entrepreneurial talent, earning $2 a week as a high school columnist for the Cleveland Press and later working at a radio station.

He served briefly in the Army Air Forces during World War II before enrolling at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio, where he met his wife, Helen. The two married in 1950, and were together for 73 years until Helen’s death in 2023.

After leaving college, Dolan launched a sports newsreel business from his apartment, using the kitchen as a makeshift studio. Though the venture was short-lived, it marked the beginning of a career defined by bold ideas and calculated risks.

In the 1960s, Dolan broke new ground by wiring Manhattan with coaxial cable to deliver television content. Despite skepticism about the viability of cable television in urban areas, Dolan’s vision and tenacity led to the creation of Sterling Manhattan Cable, a precursor to Cablevision.

His crowning achievement came in 1972, while he was aboard the Queen Elizabeth II. Using an old typewriter in his cabin, Dolan drafted a proposal for the “Green Channel,” which would become HBO. The concept revolutionized the television industry, offering viewers premium content for a subscription fee.

By the mid-1970s, Dolan had shifted his focus to Cablevision Systems, starting with a modest subscriber base in Nassau County. Over the succeeding decades, Cablevision expanded into major metropolitan areas, amassing millions of subscribers.

Dolan’s portfolio extended beyond television. He secured controlling stakes in Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, and the New York Knicks and Rangers. His son, James Dolan, currently oversees the MSG Family of Companies.

Cablevision went public in 1986, though Dolan retained majority control until the company was sold to Altice in 2016 for nearly $18 billion.

A devout Catholic, Dolan helped establish Telecare, now the Catholic Faith Network, in 1969, bringing religious programming into homes across the country.

In 1998 he co-founded the Lustgarten Foundation, dedicated to pancreatic cancer research, in memory of Cablevision Vice Chairman Marc Lustgarten. Under Dolan’s guidance, the foundation became the largest private supporter of pancreatic cancer research in the U.S., significantly advancing the disease’s survival rates.

Dolan’s philanthropic contributions extended to education, with his family funding a state-of-the-art science and research center at Chaminade High School in Mineola.

He was also a frequent and generous supporter of local nonprofits and community organizations, donating to the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and the Community Foundation of Oyster Bay, to which his family encouraged donations in its statement.

Julia Vaughn, the foundation’s director, praised Dolan for his dedication to his community and the world. “Mr. Dolan is the perfect example of a man who left the world better off from where he found it,” Vaughn wrote in a statement. “His generous support of the Community Foundation of Oyster Bay has had an immeasurable impact on our community and in the lives of our neighbors. We are eternally grateful for Mr. Dolan and his family and we will continue our work to support the mission of improving the lives of residents in need in our community.”

Charles and Helen Dolan raised six children, and had 19 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. They hosted annual Fourth of July celebrations at their Long Island estate, and drew hundreds of neighbors and friends who enjoyed fireworks over the Sound.

County Executive Bruce Blakeman praised Dolan as a “hugely successful business leader, philanthropist, veteran, and proud Nassau resident.”

Dolan is survived by his children, including James and Patrick, who continue to uphold the family’s legacy in media and philanthropy.

Funeral services will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Community Foundation, at OysterBayCF.org.