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Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi passed away in Milan at the age of 86 on June 12th.
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On June 14th, Italy held a state funeral for him. At the same time, the Italian government announced June 14th as a national day of mourning, marking the first time Italy has set a national day of mourning for a former leader.
Berlusconi first served as Italian Prime Minister in 1994 and served as Prime Minister three times in total, making him the longest-serving Prime Minister in Italy after World War II. He was also a successful businessman who not only ventured into real estate development but also created Italy’s “media empire” and once headed the Italian football club AC Milan, creating a glorious dynasty. He had a fortune of over $7 billion and was consistently ranked among Forbes’ top 500 global billionaires.
Berlusconi was born on September 29th, 1936, into a family of bank employees in Milan. His family’s wealth provided him with a good education. During his stay in Milan University, he showed an amazing business sense, not only working as a vacuum cleaner salesman and bar band bassist but also providing homework and essay writing services.
However, he truly made his fortune through real estate development. In 1960, he entered the construction industry and established his first company Edilnord in 1962. The high-end residential area “Milan No.2” he developed in the suburbs of Milan attracted many wealthy Italians and successfully launched his first salvo. Riding this wave of success, Edilnord grew rapidly and became Italy’s largest real estate developer in just over ten years.
In 1973, Berlusconi began to develop the media industry by founding the small cable television company TeleMilano. In the 1980s, he founded Italy’s first national private television station “Canale 5” and later purchased Italia 1 TV station and Rete 4 TV station. After that, he acquired publishing giant Mondadori Publishing Company and founded print media and pay-TV company to create his own “empire.”
In addition to his identity as a real estate and media tycoon, Berlusconi was also the former chairman of AC Milan Football Club.
In the early 1980s, AC Milan was at its lowest point since its establishment as an old football powerhouse. It had been relegated to the second division twice and faced serious financial problems. Even player salaries and taxes were repeatedly delayed. In February 1986, Berlusconi saw an opportunity and bought this team for $20 million. He promised Milan fans that he would make this fallen aristocrat return to its peak and dominate football. Under Berlusconi’s operation, AC Milan quickly reversed its decline. Statistics show that during Berlusconi’s 31 years at AC Milan’s helm, he won 28 championships.
With great success in real estate development, the media industry and the sports field, Berlusconi then turned to politics. However, Berlusconi’s reputation in politics is far from that in sports.
As early as when he first entered politics, American public broadcaster NPR pointed out that his motive was to save his company from bankruptcy and avoid conviction himself. On the day of his death, POLITICO, a US political media outlet, published an article stating that he had faced trial at least 36 times during his lifetime on charges ranging from falsifying accounts to bribing judges. In addition, he was often accused of having links with the Mafia, but he denied.
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