Who

David Koch is one of New York City's richest residents. The oil heir is worth $19 billion according to Forbes.

Backstory

It was David's father, Fred Koch, who founded the family-owned business in the 1940s. His big discovery: He invented the method used to refine heavy oil and turn it into gasoline. Fred initially took his finding to the Soviet Union, but after a falling out with Stalin he returned to the States (and became a member of the anti-communist John Birch Society). David and his Kansas-based brother Charles eventually took over Koch Industries and have since presided over its expansion into new commodity markets like chemicals, gas, plastics, pipelines, asphalt, and paper, making their largest acquisition in 2006 when Koch picked up Georgia-Pacific for $21 billion. Now the nation's largest privately-held company, KI generates more than $100 billion in annual revenue.

But the growth hasn't been without its casualties. For close to two decades, David and Charles have been engaged in a nasty feud with their two brothers Frederick and Bill (David's twin), a rift that dates back to David and Charles' purchase of the other brothers' stake in the company in 1983. The case was settled in 2001 for an undisclosed sum, but the two sets of brothers haven't spoken in years. "In the annals of family feuds, the slugfest of the Koch family of Kansas is one of the biggest, meanest and longest-running," remarked a reporter several years ago.

For the record

Koch's last name is not pronounced the same way as the city's ex-mayor. It's pronounced "coke."

Controversy

Given its interests in businesses like gas and chemicals, it's no surprise that Koch Industries doesn't have many friends in the environmental community. The company has been on the receiving end of numerous fines for violating federal clean air and hazardous waste laws, and paid $35 million in 2000 to settle charges of "egregious" negligence in connection with more than 300 major oil spills in six states. Equally unsurprising is the fact that Koch Industries has spent millions lobbying against stricter environmental regulations and donated vast sums to Republican candidates who support Koch's legislative agenda.

Pet causes

Koch had prostate cancer in 1995 and has been donating to cancer-related causes ever since. In 2006, he donated $20 million to Johns Hopkins to endow the David H. Koch Cancer Research Building, and he donated $100 million to his alma mater MIT to build the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. A staunch libertarian (he ran as the party's vice presidential candidate in 1980), Koch is also a major political donor and has directed almost all of his campaign contributions to Republicans. He's also a major supporter of conservative/libertarian groups like the Cato Institute, Americans for a Republican Majority, the Reason Foundation, and the John M. Olin Foundation.

The oil tycoon has directed his largesse toward the arts as well: In July 2008, he donated $100 million toward the renovation of Lincoln Center's New York State Theater, the largest gift in the institution's history. The theater—the home of the New York City Ballet and City Opera—will be renamed the David H. Koch Theater in the fall.

Personal

A longtime bachelor, Koch finally settled down at the age of 55, marrying Julia Flesher—a 32-year-old fashion assistant he met on a blind date—in May 1996. In 2003, the couple moved out of an apartment at 1040 Fifth Avenue (they eventually sold the pad to hedge funder Glenn Dubin) and into a $17 million apartment at 740 Park. (Their neighbors include David Ganek, John Thain, Kent Swig, and Steve Schwarzman.) The Koches have three kids and live with Julia's mother and three full-time nannies. They also have homes in Southampton and Palm Beach.

No joke

David Koch was tangentially connected to the Anna Nicole Smith inheritance case. J. Howard Marshall II, the oil-rich Texan she married when he was 89, owed much of his wealth to shares he owned in Koch Industries. Anna Nicole ended up suing Koch Industries for allegedly conspiring with Marshall's son to defraud her of the money she claimed she was owed.