Cummings, Nathan

Nathan Cummings (born Komiensky) was a Jewish-Canadian-American businessman, investor and philanthropist. In 1939, he purchased the C.D. Kenny Company of Baltimore, a small wholesale distributor of canned foods, coffee, tea, and spices. That was the beginning of the international company that was known as the Sara Lee Corporation. For three decades, he personally guided the growth of the company. He retired from active management in 1968 to pursue philanthropic interests and his art collection, which included French Impressionist paintings, modern sculpture, ancient Peruvian ceramics, and works of living artists.