Hall Of Fame: Lasting Influence
Spurgeon Richardson
Former President/CEO
Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau
Atlanta
Age: 67
For more than 17 years Spurgeon Richardson led the ACVB, and the hospitality and tourism industry soared. Millions of business travelers and tourists flocked to Atlanta, landing at the world’s busiest airport, attending conventions at the Georgia World Congress Center and Georgia International Convention Center, visiting art museums or the Georgia Aquarium or the King Center, and everything else the city has to offer.
And Richardson was never shy about gushing on Atlanta’s behalf.
“Everything and everybody needs a cheerleader, and I’m happy to be the cheerleader for one of the world’s great cities,” says Richardson. “Tourism is one of Atlanta’s and Georgia’s most vital industries. We’re going through rough economic times now, and it’s affecting everyone, but I’m optimistic. I think the best is yet to come.”
If so, it’ll come without Richardson, who retired as captain of the Atlanta cheerleading squad in December.
The ACVB is forecasting a dip in overall income this year as the economic downturn takes its toll, keeping would-be travelers closer to home. But thanks to the foundation Richardson has engineered, the industry is looking for a rebound that would surpass 2007’s numbers: $11.4 billion spent by 37 million visitors.
For years Richardson touted the airport and the city’s supply of hotel rooms (fifth in the nation with more than 90,000 rooms and average occupancy of more than 63 percent); underlying all of it, he says, was the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.
“That was the key that unlocked our unlimited potential,” says Richardson, who came to the ACVB after 24 years at Six Flags Over Georgia, rising through the marketing ranks, finally serving as president and general manager. “The Olympics put Atlanta in the world view.
“You can’t underestimate the importance of good marketing and public relations when the world comes to your city.” – Jerry Grillo
2008
Hank Aaron
Baseball Legend,
Founder/Owner
755 Restaurant Corp.
Mack Mattingly
Former U.S. Senator;
Former Assistant
Secretary General (NATO);
Former U.S. Ambassador
(Seychelles)
Carl Patton
Former President
Georgia State University
Herman J. Russell
Chairman/Founder
H.J. Russell & Company
2007
A.D. “Pete” Correll
Former Chairman/CEO
Georgia-Pacific Corp.
Bernie Marcus
Philanthropist
William S. Morris III
Chairman/CEO
Morris Communications Co.
2006
James Blanchard
Retired Board Chairman
Synovus Financial Corp.
Zell Miller
Senior Policy Advisor
McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP;
Former Governor,
U.S. Senator
Betty Siegel
Former President
Kennesaw State University
2005
Tom Cousins
Former Board Chairman
Cousins Properties Inc.
Vince Dooley
Athletic Director Emeritus
University of Georgia
2004
Tommy Irvin
Georgia Commissioner
of Agriculture
Manuel Maloof (1924-2004)
Longtime DeKalb County CEO
and Commissioner
Sam Massell
President
Buckhead Coalition;
Former Mayor, City of Atlanta
J. Mack Robinson
Businessman and
Philanthropist
Ted Turner
Founder, CNN, TNT and TBS;
Environmentalist and
Philanthropist
2003
Jimmy Carter
Nobel Peace Prize winner;
Former President
Rosalynn Carter
Former First Lady;
Mental Health Advocate
Dr. Louis Sullivan
Founding Dean, Morehouse
School of Medicine;
Former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Sam Nunn
Former U.S. Senator;
National Defense Authority
Griffin Bell
Former U.S. Attorney General;
Former U.S. Circuit Court Judge
S. Truett Cathy
Founder, Chick-fil-A;
Philanthropist
Andrew Young
Former Mayor,
City of Atlanta;
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Civic Leader
Carl Sanders
Former Governor;
Attorney
John C. Portman
Architect,
Developer and Entrepreneur
Thomas B. Murphy
(1924-2007)
Longtime Speaker,
Georgia House of Representatives
