©August 2003 Brigham Young University. All rights reserved.
Donated by James B. Jacobson in June, 2003
Unprocessed collection, do not access without permission of Supervisor of Reference Services.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from James B. Jacobson (b. 1922) Papers must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.
In high school Jacobson was active in sports and excelled in academics. He was a hard worker, finding employment on paper routes, construction crews, and on his grandmother’s ranch in Pine Valley, UT. He graduated from high school in 1940. For college he originally planned on attending UCLA, but enrolled at USC (in the College of Commerce) in September 1940 with his father’s encouragement and the support of a full tuition academic scholarship. He began studying accounting, his father’s profession, and his father hoped he would eventually pursue a career in law. He became president of Lambda Delta Sigma, the LDS fraternity at USC, during his second year at college.
Jacobson was drafted into the U.S. Army on 31 January 1943, and later entered the Army Specialized Training Program to be trained as an engineer at Pomona College in Claremont, CA. When that program was terminated, he was transferred to the 13th Armored Division as an MP. While training in Texas, he also guarded German POWs. Near the end of World War II, the 13th Armored Division, attached to Patton’s 3rd Army, saw action in Germany.
After the military, Jacobson did not return to USC, but enrolled instead at UCLA to finish his degree. He graduated, magna cum laude, with a Bachelor’s in Industrial Management in 1947. He was accepted to the Wharton Graduate School of Finance and studied there for a year, choosing to forego an academic career and instead hiring with Prudential Insurance in Los Angeles. He later received his MBA from USC, after he was already with Prudential. His MBA thesis was the first comprehensive study of group creditors’ insurance ever written, and Jacobson received praise for this work throughout his distinguished career.
Jacobson stayed in Los Angeles for nine years, working first as a group insurance underwriter, then being promoted to Manager of Group Creditors Insurance. He later spent time in San Francisco (1957-1962) as the head of the Group Sales and Service Office, then moved back to L.A. as the Associate Director of Group Sales and Service Office for the Western US (1962-1964).
His latest stint in Southern California proved to be short, as he was quickly transferred to Prudential’s corporate offices in New Jersey (1964-1973), first as Director of Group Sales and Service, with subsequent promotions to Executive Director of Group Insurance, Vice President over the Corporate Group Annuity Department, and Senior Vice President over the Corporate Group Insurance Department (overseeing the company’s 37 field offices, creating policy, and handling some of the largest group cases). In this last station, Jacobson oversaw the creation of one of the nation’s first major-insurance-company-backed HMO’s. During his time as a senior executive, he was always active in industry associations (e.g. the Health Insurance Association of America, and one of a Life Insurance Association of America five-person committee that worked with Washington to develop regulations for the life insurance industry in accordance with Nixon’s 1971 Wage and Price Controls law).
Four years after his last promotion, he was asked to take over as the President of Prudential’s Western Home Office in Los Angeles. In this position, he became personal friends with Tom Bradley, 4-term mayor of Los Angeles. He also oversaw the construction of 3 buildings to house the Western corporate offices. He became involved with many boards of charitable and non-profit organizations, and he was often invited to speak to corporate and other groups (e.g. the San Francisco Rotary Club, the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Town Hall of California, BYU MBA graduates, community functions, university lectures, etc...). He ended his career with Prudential in 1983 when he declined to return to New Jersey and the company underwent major restructuring, consolidating the Western Office into another regional office.
After Prudential, he went to CalFed Inc. as Executive Vice President, in which capacity he oversaw the operations of six subsidiary companies. After turning 65, he remained with CalFed for three more years as a consultant and Chairman of Beneficial Standard Life Insurance. Since then, he has served in senior executive and board positions for a handful of different organizations.
During his professional career, Jacobson served on 22 boards of companies and over a dozen boards of non-profit and for-profit organizations. Prominent among them are KBIG; Bonneville International for 20 years, serving as Chair since 1996; and Deseret Trust Company, on which he still serves. Other prominent for-profit boards were International Lease Finance Corporation (lessor of Jumbo Jet aircraft); First Professional Bank, N.A.; Beneficial Standard Life Insurance Company; American Medical International, founder of the investor-owned hospital industry and the largest and most prominent of the boards that he served on; the California Chamber of Commerce, during which he arranged for a select group to tour the People’s Republic of China prior to the formalization of diplomatic relations; a number of local hospital boards; the Boy Scouts of America; the National Conference of Christians and Jews; the BYU School of Management National Advisory Committee; and the California Roundtable. He also organized the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation and was instrumental in establishing the Los Angeles Ballet.
Jacobson has served in many administrative positions within the LDS Church. He served as a stake missionary, President in his Stake’s Seventies Quorum, Bishop’s counselor, Bishop, gospel doctrine teacher, youth leader, counselor in three Stake Presidencies in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Peninsula, and New Jersey, high councilor, Branch President of a single’s branch, executive secretary to a Regional Representative, and Regional Representative in Southern California. He served in the last calling for 7 ½ years. Jacobson also served as a member of the Church Audit Committee.
Jacobson was active in anti-pornography councils and interfaith associations throughout Southern California, and was associated for 14 years with the Southern California Mormon Choir as both the President and/or priesthood advisor. He has served since 1984 on the Southern California Area Public Affairs Council, which is active in media, community and interfaith relations.
This collection contains papers emphasizing Jacobson’s college education, career with Prudential Insurance, executive careers with other corporations after his retirement from Prudential, service on numerous boards of directors, travel, his family, and church service.
Family History / Introduction
Religious and Family History including journal entries; Basset family, O’Neil, McGregor; Jan’s family.
Jan’s family history continued, Barlow, Jacobson; lyrics to songs from youth; Jan and James marriage; experiences from his children’s youth.
Jan and James relationship at UCLA, marriage and decline into Parkinson disease; business mentor, Lee Bickmore; article “Time Management” by Ed Barnard; relation with dad; people that James knew in high school; mother's death; reflections on balance between church life and business life.
Emerson Junior High School; childhood memories including New York Giant’s Rich Gordon; Life in Los Angeles; athletics, football, basketball; Hamilton High School; Bonneville International Corporation; effects of old age; dinner/conference with President Hinckley and business executives in Los Angeles (no date); L.A. interfaith public affairs conference (no date).
High School Prom; High School dates; football; academics; college decisions and experiences; memories from Pine Valley; home description, farm life; temple work later in life; experiences at Prudential Life Insurance; commencement of World War II.
Sunday school at the Wilshire Ward; farm life in Pine Valley; 24th of July celebration; Conference; temple work and a letter with poem “And God Said No” by Claudia Mendon; USC; social life of Pine Valley; St. George experiences.
Experiences in the Army; Arlington Reception Center; “Black Cat Division”; military comrades; OSC; Camp Boue; first furlough to Los Angeles; Camp Kilmer, New Jersey; Thirteen Armored Division going to war in Europe.
German Autoban; Tann, Germany; Germany’s surrender, May 7, 1945; Telegram from Eisenhower announcing surrender of Germans; Letter to soldiers from General G.S. Patton.
Alex Butterfield revealed Nixon tapes and was punished by government; contact with Jack Bridges; people in pledge class that Jim has kept in contact with; Epsilons Phi chapter of Sigma Nu at UCLA reunion; regretting never going on a mission; experiences as a stake missionary; life at UCLA; courting Jan; graduating; Sept. 1947 accepted to Wharton; Prudential; trying to find a career with different insurance companies; conversion to The Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-Day Saints; joining the Group Insurance Division; Paul McKeown, close friend; journal entries about a phone call from Gordon B. Hinckley.
Los Angeles World Affairs Council dinner; President Hinckley comments on Karen; Strategic Air Commandrament meeting talk on prophets; Prudential Group Insurance; Dale Hamilton; Funeral Poem “Miss me, but let me go”; people from the division; Western Home Office; 50th Wedding anniversary/ family gathering; Christian’s baptism; Eric’s ordination as an Elder; Hosting Consuls General in a BBQ; Temple Hill Christmas lighting program; President Hinckley’s proposition 22 – marriage between a man and a woman; House problems, investments, spending time with Jan; Founding of Prudential.
Founding of Prudential; Western Home Office; Old newspaper articles; On the road from Portland to Pendleton to Walla Walla to LeGrand to L.A.
Edmund Whittaker; Prudential’s Group Insurance/job after grad school; Jack Bridges; Paul McQueyen; Recreation and Athletic Association/ Medical Department; Poem entitled “Thanatopsis.”
L.A. Group Office; Jim as President of Western Home Office; told to stay in San Francisco instead of going to Salt Lake; series of cities he worked in, including Portland, Denver, San Francisco, Strategic Air Commandramento etc.; dining in San Francisco.
Tony DiStasi; Ken Nichols; Corporate Group Insurance Department; Ken Foster; clips from the Newark Star Ledger; trip to Decatur; trip to University of Chicago to hire employees; notes of promotion.
Tulsa Group Office; Charlotte Group Office; work as Senior Vice President; senior office council; transference to Western Home Office in L.A.
Various locations of offices; remodeling of L.A. office; visits to different sales offices; Building in Westlake Village; Remodeling different offices; Feeling scared in Seattle; Visit to Hawaii office.
December 1973 WHO’s News; Letter from George Wafford; Announcement to the field; Brochure entitled “Facts about Prudential Regional Home Offices, Canadian Operations and Subsidiaries”; Program for PRAA; December 1975 WHO’s News; Western Home Office Ordinary Agencies magazine dated Summer 1975; Pictures in Hawaii; Picture of Jim Clark 1975 Western Round-up; WHO’s News; Letter from Belmont Anderson; Letter from Vivian (Belmont’s wife); WHO’s News October 17,1974; 1978 at Prudential; Thank you letter from Bob Beck; 1982 WHO’s News; Embarcadero Center; 1980 panel discussion.
Article “Pru Official Details Challenge of Full Financial Services”; 1982 talk before L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce; 1982 WHO’s News; Going through two thick files on Western Home Office District Agencies; Arabic Newspaper; Earl Clark letter; Invitations, spreadsheets, pictures; Letter from Louis C. Yount; “Moments to Remember by Lou; Bob Funke; “Groundbreaking in Woodland Hills: WHO Can Dig It.”
News to sell Wilshire building; Breaking ground in Thousand Oaks; Move to Westlake; Announcement of retirement from Prudential; Layoffs; Job offers; Job offer at CalFed, Inc.; Spiritual Experience with regards to job hunt; Letter from Prudential; Last day at Prudential, September 30, 1983.
Letters and gifts from people at Prudential; Private Party that night; Prudential Western Home Office article, “Jim Jacobson, Bullish on the Eighties”; Letter from Malcolm and Betty MacKinnon; Letter from Jim and Mary Lou Clark; Letter from Barbara and Peter Schwartz; Letter from Lloyd Shaffer; Letter from Ed Meyer; Letter from Steve Snow; Letter from Grace and Dick Merrill; Letter from Chuck Stevens; Letter from Lou Yount; Prudential’s insurance conferences.
Stories of Prudential conferences; introduction into CalFed; letter from Bob Dockson; CalFed’s Annual Report “Consummate Leadership”; congratulatory letters from associates.
Description of CalFed departments and associates; work with Beneficial Standard Life Insurance Company (BSLIC).
Article “Lessons of Leadership,” “Keeping a ‘Mighty Pump’”; appointing to the Chairman of the Board of Bonneville International Corporation; Letter from Spencer W. Kimball; stories of associates.
Description of CalFed executive break-down; International Lease Finance Corporation; work with KBIG, and FM and AM radio stations; Bonneville’s Mission Statement; Bonneville’s Core Value.
Deseret Trust Company of California meeting; Board of Directors appointed; Letters from Deseret Company associates; radio music statistics; Minutes to first Board of Curators meeting.
Other Bonneville Communication companies; Deseret Management Corporation; story “Keep Your Fork”; Trust Services in America experiences; stories regarding associates.
Description of officers and experiences of the Board of Directors at American Medical International; articles from The Wall Street Journal; stock stream of AMI.
CalFed sold Beneficial Standard Life Insurance Company to Conseco Incorporated of Carmel, Indiana; introduction of new committees: Management Compensation and Continuity Committee, Audit Committee, UStel; various experiences being on the Board of Directors; introduction onto the Deseret Trust Company of California.
Various committees served on; LDS Foundation curriculum; Minutes for Deseret Trust Company Board of Trustees meeting (June 23, 1994); introduced as a Regional Representative in Chile; article “Advisory Board Minutes – The Qualities of Success”; Course content of Financial Fitness System.
Advisory Board; Financial Freedom Report Speaker Guidelines; FreeCom Communications business units; Zen Braun experiences; experiences and information about different business entities.
Activities with American Life Insurance Association; various conference experiences with different corporations; The Strategic Air Commandramento Bee articles; article “Usury Law Deters Investors, Executive Says”; article from Pacific Business “Stop Crime Before It Starts”; Anti-Crime Committee experiences.
Associates with The People’s Republic of China; Letter from Shirley Clinton; correspondence with Clay McCowan; Letter from Walter Gerken.
List of people and corporations they are associated with; Letter from Frederick Llewellyn; Memo from Board Meeting at Prudential’s Headquarters in Westlake (Nov. 18, 1982); article “L.A. Ties Strong”; article from Southern California Business; Letter to John Wooden; Inaugural Ball and events during; Recipients of the Golden 44 Award.
Indicted into the Business/Professional Hall of Fame; member of the Orthopedic Hospital Advisory Council then put on the Board of Trustees; information regarding the Orthopedic Hospital; correspondences between the Crippled Children Guild; involvement with Boy Scouts of America.
Boy Scouts of American continued; involvement with KCET; involvement on the Board of National Council of Community and Justice; Criteria for National Conference of Christians and Jews; quote from R. Russell “People learn as they live”; letters from associates of National Council of Community and Justice.
Involvement with National Council of Community and Justice continued; Hollywood Turf Club Associated Charities; Portland Rotary Club; articles from U.S. Air Magazine; letters regarding US Air Magazine; interview from Southern California Business; speech from Vital Speeches of the Day; Eyewitness News clip.
Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Ballet; New York City Ballet involvement; articles from Los Angeles Times and New York Post; various individuals on the Board of Directors.
Los Angeles Ballet continued; correspondence from members of the Los Angeles Ballet Guild and members of the Board of Directors; information regarding the Music Center of Los Angeles.
Correspondence between different artistic entities and their affiliations; resignation from the ICSC Board of Directors; letters from the BYU School of Management and Special Collections.
Participation in the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation; List of Trustees for the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation; Mission Statement for the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation; including newspaper articles from Los Angeles Daily Journal; various personal correspondence; newsletter article The Advisory “Jacobson elected new Criminal Justice Legal Foundation Chairman”; CJFL activities with the NAACP; American Prosecutor’s Research Institute; Fundraising activities.
Criminal Justice Legal Foundation personal correspondence; Political activities of the Advisory Commission on Life and Health Insurance; his own thoughts on politics; 100 Club; Lochinvars Club including notary members and chairmen history; Lincoln Club; Sons of the Desert.
Job characteristics of head of operations at Prudential Life Insurance; Los Angeles Country Club and California Club, Food and Wine Committee; description of 1984 Olympics in L.A.; Chairman of the KBIG radio station Advisory Board; dinner for Ettie Lee: Homes for Youth; Strategic Air Command and journal entries; Management consultant assignments; Southern California Public Affairs Council; Roger Hendricks background; Douglas A Callister.
Retirement from CalFed Inc. and correspondence; National Association of Broadcasters Annual Meeting in Las Vegas; organization and dates of diaries kept; description of fathers birth certificate; Youth experiences in the church and early development of testimony.
Chart of weekly mission statistics; correspondence including missionary certificate; stake missionary work including description of Beverly Hills ward; description of activities in the Los Angeles Stake; studies at the Wharton Graduate School of Finance; marriage to Jan and young married life including callings in the church.
Line of authority for the priesthood; description of Reseda Ward of the San Fernando Stake; Stake correspondence including ordination as Bishop; activities as bishop; back operation in 1956; description of ward members; brief description and history of L.A. Temple.
Bishopric in Reseda ward continued; set apart as Stake President for Reseda Stake.
Released from Stake Presidency; testimony of Christ; called to a MIA position in the Stake; Prudential transfers him to San Francisco Group Sales and Service Office; San Mateo Stake description; Progress Fund Program brochure; “Meeting These Needs” article; Tri-Stake Progress report of 1960; notable members of the San Mateo Stake; Jan’s church service; San Mateo Stake Conferences; Prudential promotion to Associate Director of Group Sales and Service; Correspondence with General Authorities.
Activities of being in the Stake Presidency in New Jersey; members of the Short Hill Ward; letter from Stake President; Los Angeles Stake High Council activity.
Experiences in counsel; Los Angeles First Branch experiences; letter from the Presiding Bishopric; Family to Family Book of Mormon plan.
Los Angeles Stake continued; service in the church in regional and special assignments; letter from the Quorum of the Seventy; letter from Ezra Taft Benson; press releases from Latter-day Saint magazines.
“Counsel from Elder Backman, 9-21-84”; “What is a Regional Representative”; schedule of President Cook’s visit to wards in the Glendale Region; letters from various Area Authorities; experiences as Regional Representative.
Various letters from Authorities; experiences in church leadership; clipping from Latter-day Sentinel.
Breakdowns of various ward structures; article “Leaders, Elders Team Up”; callings as senior missionaries.
Information regarding the Los Angeles Genealogical Library Budget; various letters regarding Public Affairs; activities for Single Wards; letters regarding Spanish needs; Special Assignment Committee.
Calling to the Task Committee; experiences as Chairman of the Southern California Area Public Communications Council; activities and letters regarding anti-pornography; articles regarding anti-pornography; letters of appreciation.
Various letters of correspondence; Book of Mormon sent; comments on grade point averages.
Letters regarding Single wards and branches; time as President of the Southern California Mormon Choir; letters and articles regarding the Choir.
Southern California Mormon Choir continued, international trips; regional representative of the Southern California Area Public Communications Council.
Public Communications Council continued; letters and articles regarding Public Communications.
Public Affairs continued; training for Public Affairs Committee; Los Angeles Temple Lights.
Los Angeles Temple Lighting; Consul’s General Western Family Barbeque; National Council of Community and Justice; Public Affairs, Proposition 22, etc; World Affairs.
Trip to the People’s Republic of China; English as a Second Language Project; Community Relations work; Interfaith relations; San Diego Temple relations with other religions.
Experiences working at the San Diego Temple; experiences on Church Audit Committee; California Task Force Committee.
Comments about various Presidents of the Church; Church growth statistics; Comments on the different focuses of the church.
Focuses of the church continued; major changes in the church; experiences in his life that built his testimony.
Journey to building a testimony; people of great influence.
Comments on business career; spiritual manifestations; expressing love for his wife, Jan.
Expressing his love for Jan, personal correspondence written by Jim and Jan to friends and relatives; background of Jan’s life; marriage experiences.
Stories about his children; description of children and characteristics.
Richard’s death; other experiences and stories about his children; experiences living in Los Angeles.
Trip to Eagle Lake; Life in San Francisco Bay; Life in Short Hills, New Jersey; Karen’s stitches; home in Short Hills; Karen’s years in school.
Steve received a mission call and decided not to go; Steve at UCLA; Friends in Short Hills; Friends at Prudential; Canoe Brook Country Club; Christmas traditions; Family traditions and vacations; Second back surgery; Richard’s surgery on left foot and leg.
Richard’s surgery on ankles; New York City entertainment; Getting pulled over; Burglaries; New car; Richard goes to jail; WestPoint football; Not able to sing; Steve in trouble for lighting grass on fire; Article by Dennis Smith; Certificates from Short Hills; Steve’s first wedding.
Ordaining Richard an elder; Starting with Sunday August 5, 1973 through January of the following year, going through date book; Richard calls Guam; Children’s schooling and employment in Via Verona; Steve and Kathy Blunt; Pistol in Steve’s bag at the airport; Steve marries Marjorie.
Karen married Csaba Elemer Palfy; Trip to Paris; Papa/Herb Mailstrup, Jan’s father dies; Karen receives endowments; Letter from Karen; Richard marries, divorces, marries Sheree Hoff; Family trips; caretakers for Jan; article regarding their neighbors Zsa Zsa and Conrad Gabor
Chuck and Harriett Luckman; articles from books and Los Angeles Times; Frank Rothman; Harold Williams; Childhood friends; Friends from East coast; George Androse
Jan’s health decline; Richards back problems; Grandchildren: Eric, Michael Troy Jacobson, etc.; stories about his grandchildren
Stories about grandchildren; Four chapters of “A Near Crash! By William Jacobson. A Truly Story”; background and stories regarding Ronald Lee Jacobson
Various deaths of close relatives; Jan and Jim’s 50th wedding anniversary; letters from family in response to wedding anniversary
Letters continued regarding Jan and Jim’s 50th wedding anniversary
Poem, “My Attic”; impressions of self
Self impressions; various stories; perceptions of life
Various of hobbies and interests; Health issues; Journal entries; Trip to Jerusalem
Trip to Jerusalem continued; Trips across Europe
Experiences with travel continued; Comments on art and favorite artists and pieces
Letters to and from children, relatives, friends, business associates, general authorities, etc.
Letters continued; favorite quotes; love letters from Jan; Poem, “He says, she says.”
Parable, “Time Management”; Ten principles to live by; closing comments