- lifelong Texan Democrat, even as Texas changed from strongly Dixiecrat to strongly Republican

- Even before the Great Depression, his family was very poor.

- graduated from the University of Texas and later donated millions to the school

- founder of American Income Life Insurance Company in 1951, where he made his fortune

- NY Times obituary mentioned "His contributions to George S. McGovern's 1972 presidential campaign put Mr. Rapoport on one of President Richard M. Nixon's enemies lists" in the 7th paragraph (out of 23).

- He may have the first NY Times obituary that mentions inclusion on the second list. (The NY Times did not publish the second list, just a short article about it.)

- celebrated 70th wedding anniversary two months before death.

- self-described "capitalist with a conscience" (also the title of his 2002 memoir).

- major contributor to Bill Clinton, who spoke at his memorial service.

- lifelong donor to causes for human rights and ethics.

- His Marxist father had been sent to Siberia in 1905 for taking part in a demonstration in St. Petersburg. (St. Petersburg was Leningrad for most of his life, having been changed to Petrograd in 1914 and Leningrad in 1924 and back to St. Petersburg in 1991.)

- In 1987, he and his wife established the Bernard and Audre Rapoport Foundation "to meet basic human needs while building individual and social resiliency" or, more poetically, "to improve the social fabric of life."