Chairman Emeritus, Marcus Corporation
UW Major: Accounting
Joining the family business wasn’t always the plan. After graduating from UW–Madison in 1957, Marcus earned a law degree from the University of Michigan, completed military service, and worked for a San Francisco real estate developer.
In 1962, his father persuaded him to return to the Midwest. “He had a great sense for the next big thing, and it was incredible to watch,” Marcus says of his father, Ben Marcus, a Polish-Jewish immigrant who founded the company in 1935. Stephen Marcus’s first assignment was renovating the historic Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee. Over the next several decades, Marcus rose through the organization as president, CEO, and chairman of the board, evolving the company into a publicly traded corporation and a national leader in entertainment and hospitality. Today, the Marcus Corporation owns or operates 975 screens at 77 theaters in 17 states, as well as 17 hotels and resorts in eight states, including The Pfister Hotel, Hilton Milwaukee, and Saint Kate — The Arts Hotel in Milwaukee; the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa in Lake Geneva; and Hilton Madison Monona Terrace.
A member of the Wisconsin Lodging Hall of Fame and the Wisconsin Business Hall of Fame, Marcus is regarded as a central figure in the state’s business community. His impact extends to civic and cultural spaces, as well. He’s held leadership roles with such organizations as the Greater Milwaukee Committee, United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County, and the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. The company’s giving arm, the Marcus Corporation Foundation, donated nearly $13 million in cash and in-kind contributions to community organizations in the last five years.
Ask Marcus what he’s proudest of, though, and he doesn’t talk about roles or recognition. He talks about his colleagues, former classmates, and especially his family, including three sons and nine grandchildren. Two of his sons followed him into the business — Greg is chair, president, and CEO of Marcus Corporation; David MBA’93 is CEO of Marcus Investments LLC and chair of the Marcus Corporation Foundation. His youngest son, Andrew, took a different path as a documentary filmmaker.
Marcus says he never set expectations that his children would follow in his footsteps; instead, he emphasized the value of education — something he heard often from his own parents — and is grateful for what he learned at the UW. Outside the classroom, joining Pi Lambda Phi was a defining part of his college experience. Marcus calls his fraternity brothers — who include Herb Kohl ’56, Bud Selig ’56, and Lew Wolff ’57 — a “great group of guys. It’s remarkable how well so many of them did after Madison, regardless of the shenanigans we pulled. I credit the quality education we got.
“I’m proud to be a Badger,” Marcus says, “and I’m proud of all the Badgers I’ve met who have helped shape lives around the world.”
