Name William Meister | Role Entrepreneur | |
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Died May 18, 1995, Great Falls, Dranesville, Virginia, United States | ||
William F. von Meister (February 21, 1942 – May 18, 1995) was an American entrepreneur who founded and participated in a number of startup ventures in the Washington, D.C., area. These included The Source, an early online service and CompuServe competitor, and Control Video Corporation, a predecessor company to America Online.
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Early years
William Ferdinand von Meister was born on February 21, 1942 in New York City to F. W. von Meister and Eleanora Colloredo-Mannsfeld. His father, F. W. von Meister was the godson of Kaiser Wilhelm II, his mother, a countess. In the 1930s, F. W. von Meister was the United States representative of the Zeppelin Company (Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH) that built the Hindenburg.
William von Meister attended high school at Middlesex Academy in Massachusetts, and a finishing school in Switzerland. He then attended Georgetown University, though he did not finish., He persuaded nearby American University to enroll him in its master's program for business.
Personal life
von Meister has at least one brother, Peter. His great-grandfather, Wilhelm Meister (1827–1895), founded the Teerfarbenfabrik Meister, Lucius & Co. in Germany, which later became Hoechst AG.
Death
Bill von Meister died of cancer in Great Falls, Virginia, at the age of 53.