Figure 1.--Hee we see BC and Adelaide Rorbes with their five boys: Bruce, Duncan, Malcomb, Gordon, and Wallace (Wally) . Steve's father Malcomb Sr. is second from right. The boys all attended the Lawrenceville residential prep school which was run like a British public (elite private) school. We think that they are wearing the school uniform here about 1933.

Scottish-born U.S. business publisher B.C. Forbes founded Forbes (1917). B.C. was born in New Deer, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1880). His parents were Agnes (Moir) and Robert Forbes, an enterprising but only modestly successful storekeeper and tailor. B.C. studied at the University College, Dundee (at the time part of the University of St Andrews. He was attracted by journalism and began working as a reporter and editorial writer with a local newspaper (1897). He moved to Johannesburg, South Africa seeking greater pportunity (1991). He got a job with the Rand Daily Mail under its first editor, Edgar Wallace. This of course put him in the middle of the Bohr War. He immigrated to the United States (1904), ending up in New York City. America at the time was undergoing an unpreedented economic boom and had become the most important industrial country in the world with an economy unrivaled by any of the Europen powers that had previously dominated the world economy. B.C. worked as a writer and financial editor at the Journal of Commerce before joining the Hearst chain of newspapers as a syndicated columnist (1911). He worked with Hearst for only 2 years. He then became business and financial editor at the New York American (1913). After a few years there, noting that America did not have a business magazine, he founded Forbes just as America entered World War I (1917). Fobes did well until the Depression. Ad revenue plummeted and competition increased. B.C. married Adelaide Mary (nee Stevenson) (1915). They had five children (Bruce, Duncan, Malcomb, Gordon, and Wallace (Wally). Duncan was killed in a car accudent. Only Bruce and Malconb were interested in business. So B.C. split the magazine with one third each going to Bruce and Malcomb anf the other one third going to Gordon and Wally who were not interested in business. B.C. remained editor-in-chief until his death (1954). In his final years he was assisted bu his older sons, Bruce and Malcomb. BC was interned back in his native Scotland. When Bruce died, Malcomb brought his one third from his widow and eventualy gained control of the remaining third from his younger brothers and ran the magazine with a flamboyant style..

Created: 4:19 PM 1/12/2018
Last updated: 4:19 PM 1/12/2018