Ricardo Wolf

We've mentioned the Wolf Prize in several profiles before, especially its importance in the field of mathematics, where there is no Nobel, and Wolf (together with the Fields Medal) acts as a sort-of-substitute. But math is not the only Wolf award.

There are Nobel-copying chemistry, physics, and medicine, as well as arts (laureates include Marc Chagall, Frank Gehry, and Isaac Stern) and agriculture(?). All of these are bestowed by the Wolf Foundation, which was established by a man with the name of Richard Wolf, AKA Ricardo Wolf, AKA Ricardo Lobo, AKA Ricardo Subirana y Lobo. We'll just go with Ricardo Wolf.

Wolf was born to a Jewish family in Germany, but emigrated to Cuba prior to World War I. There, he became rich after inventing a process to recover iron from foundry waste. Wolf wed Spanish Olympic tennis player Francisca Subirana, and the couple changed their name to the Spanish translation of "Wolf", Lobo. After supporting Fidel Castro in the Cuban Revolution, Wolf declined the offer to be Minister of Finance and accepted an ambassadorship to Israel instead. He stayed in the country even after Cuba severed ties, and used his steel fortune to established the Wolf Foundation in 1975. It has been awarding prizes since 1978.

Just don't expect us to name any laureates in agriculture...