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J.D. (center left) and Rich (center right)
with their Israeli guides in Jerusalem, Israel
PROFESSIONAL CAREER
Rich is an activist in his role as Director of The Richard Norris Weissman Charitable Fund, focusing on supporting organizations and activities that actively empower LGBTQ and Jewish people who are currently under attack, focused on fighting homophobia and anti-Semitism. An additional component, the fund supports animal rights and rescue, and the protection of endangered species, to ensure their safety and humane treatment as part of a civilized society.
In 2023, Rich formed a new think-tank/center of excellence to help Democratic LGBTQ+ candidates win elections by embracing a new paradigm for political campaigns that is strategy-focused and data-driven (www.ibisgroupinstitute.com). The organization is called Ibis Group Institute, and it provides strategic guidance to candidates to connect them with experts from corporate, academic, and related backgrounds at no cost (all members of the Institute are volunteers). The Institute is working under the auspices of the Equality PAC, the political arm of the Congressional Equality Caucus - the LGBTQ+ Congressional caucus in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. The Institute works with a handful of vetted candidates running for Congressional office during the 2024 election cycle, expanding its capacity to support more candidates over time. Rich sits on the Ibis Group Institute Leadership Team.
Rich recently worked as a volunteer data scientist for the Center for New Data, an analytics non-profit organization dedicated to fighting voter suppression nation-wide and in specific regions through sophisticated data analytics algorithms.
Rich was CEO/President and founder/owner of DMA (headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, with facilities in Vancouver B.C, Nevada and Florida), a premier provider of cloud technology database systems in the U.S. and Canada for banks and credit unions (and other financial institutions) for management, finance, marketing and sales analytics. The company focused on innovative metrics and use of algorithms, machine learning, and AI for new risk management paradigms through "big data" intelligence, utilizing cutting-edge and unique methods for data integration, research, and statistical and behavioral modeling. Rich also served as head of the DMA Think Tank, developing new analytic concepts to inspire the industry to think in terms of sustainability and long-term risk mitigation components as key managerial concepts. He sold the company in 2014 to The Riverside Company ($15 billion company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio) and remained as DMA CEO up through management transition in 2015, when Rich left DMA and when DMA purchased and merged with Baker Hill, a provider of credit risk management. The company now operates under that brand.
Prior, Rich worked as Senior Vice President, Executive Director of Marketing at three large, global institutions: Bank of America/BAC, U.S. Bank/Bancorp, and National Westminster Bank USA, as well as working in EMA Research in the packaged goods industry. Rich became Executive Marketing Director at his first bank at the age of 30, among the youngest in the field at that time. Over his career, Rich pioneered and managed a variety of database, financial, strategic, product development, pricing, automation, delivery channel, marketing, sales, branding, and public relations functions.
Rich’s work has been recognized for its distinctive thought leadership. He is also a strategic innovation and motivational speaker, having often presented at top-tier conferences and conventions. Rich's work has been noted in The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Business Week and a multitude of other leading publications. As a prolific researcher and writer, he has authored many articles, research, and white papers.
Rich now provides expertise, time and resources for not-for-profit activities, including writing. He has contributed many articles to HuffPost and other publications, with an analytic focus on social and political issues, and reviews of film and live theater from a social science perspective. He is a member of NLGJA (National Lesbian and Gay Journalist Association) for LGBTQ journalists. Rich is also involved in music and entertainment, and he studies voice and piano, having sung in a number of gay men's choruses and in local musical productions.
Born in New York, Rich obtained his B.A. summa cum laude, two master’s degrees and completed his Ph.D. program coursework in the social sciences, focused on quantitative analysis/statistics, data science at New York University. Rich holds many academic awards, including Phi Beta Kappa, Psi Chi, and others. For one of his graduate degrees, Rich interned at LIJ-Hillside Psychiatric Hospital, working with schizophrenic/psychotic adolescents. Rich’s innovative graduate thesis was in the area of statistical interactionist modeling as a new psychiatric paradigm. He also attended NYU’s school of business to enhance his education in advanced statistics/mathematics,, and he completed his education at age 24. His professional career moved quickly forward thereafter. As his career developed, Rich attended and completed the Marketing Management Program at Stanford University as well.
Rich went to Israel at age 16 after graduating high school, and he completed the one-year Mechina Preparatory Program at Tel Aviv University, followed by his first-year undergraduate studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Rich grew up on Long Island, New York in Roslyn Heights, and graduated from the Wheatley High School in Old Westbury (part of the East Williston Public Schools). Rich speaks Hebrew, French, and limited Yiddish/German.
FAMILY
Rich and his husband, J.D. Horn, live in their residences in Palm Springs, San Francisco, and Black Butte Ranch (Central Oregon in the Cascade Mountains). They are the proud parents of their two accomplished daughters, both of whom are attorneys - one with law and MBA degrees from Northwestern/Kellogg, and one with law degree from U.C. Hastings; both passed the California bar (photos below), along with other states, and both work as attorneys - one in Chicago (IL) in corporate law, and one in Portland (OR) specializing in water/land use. One completed her undergraduate degree in economics and political science (and previously worked on the Hill in D.C. in the House and in the Senate), and the other in the social sciences (and previously worked for large environmental nonprofits). Their elder daughter is married to an ICU physician who graduated from Northwestern medical school (photo below). She also sits on the board of ACLU Next Generation. Having recently given birth to a beautiful granddaughter, Rich and J.D. are now grandparents. Rich and J.D. are also the proud parents of their unofficially adopted son who recently completed his Masters in Public Policy in quantitative analytics for environmental policy at American University in D.C. He completed his undergraduate degree in environmental studies (and worked for a government agency in measuring the impact of environmental legislation). Rich And J.D.'s younger daughter plays the oboe, and Rich and J.D.'s son plays the cello (and was a member of his university's orchestra), piano, guitar, and clarinet. Rich and J.D. are also pet parents for a rescue Chihuahua (photo below). Rich and J.D. are members of Congregation Sherith Israel synagogue in San Francisco. They travel extensively throughout the world, and often visit NYC as devoted Broadway and Lincoln Center musical theater, drama, opera, dance, symphony, and museum enthusiasts. Rich's sister lives in Portland (OR), as do her two children, son-in-law, and grandson.
J.D. is an author of eight published novels, including the international, best-selling and highly acclaimed "Witches of New Orleans" series (introduced 2018, published by 47North) and the "Witching Savannah" series (published by 47North). J.D.'s books have been given top reviews worldwide, and have been featured at BEA (BookExpo America), New York Comic Con, Berlin Book Fair, London Book Fair, and many other prestigious venues. JD's books are among the top selling novels in the Southern gothic and horror/fantasy genres throughout the world in both the U.S. and many other international English-speaking and non-English speaking markets. J.D.'s books have been translated into in Spanish, French, German, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, and Turkish for foreign market publication and sales. Another novel by J.D., "Shivaree," was also published by 47North and was introduced at New York Comic Con. J.D. also writes short stories, and his short story "Pretty Enough To Catch Her" was published in "The Mammoth Book of Southern Gothic Romance." J.D. has another published short story entitled "Pitch" which was released in the "Phantasma" collection, "Peculiar Paradise" published in "Unnerving Magazine,” and "Class of '72" published in "The Demons of King Solomon" collection. He was also featured in the "Palm Springs Noir" collection of short stories. J.D. was featured in "Palm Springs Life" as one of Palm's Springs international bestselling authors in the spread entitled "Good Stories Never Die - How J.D. Horn picked up an old manuscript and became a bestselling author."
J.D is now working on another book in a new genre for him - murder mystery. The book will be published under the name of Jack Douglas Horn, a new persona for J.D. as he enters this new genre. The book is represented by Darlene Chan of the Linda Chester Literary Agency.
In December 2020, J.D. started Curious Blue Press, a new independent publisher of original fantasy and horror fiction and occult nonfiction. He has already published four books: “Good Southern Witches,” two separate editions of “December Tales – Ghost Stories,” and "The Little Book of Horrors." All are short story anthologies, and all available online at various sites and in local bookstores. J.D. is the publisher and editor, and authors submit original manuscripts to him through the Curious Blue Press site, and from those submissions, he selects and edits works for publication. "Little Book of Horrors" consists predominantly of famous French writers from the mid 1800's through the 1930's, whose works were not typically translated into English, and not accessible to the English-speaking world. J.D., who speaks and reads French fluently, translated these wonderful lost stories and published them so that English speakers can now enjoy them. Curious Blue Press is currently publishing its fourth book.
J.D. was raised in rural Tennessee, and has since lived in many cities in the world, including Chicago, Monterey, San Francisco, Hollywood, Paris, Tokyo, Seattle, and Portland (Oregon). He studied comparative literature as an undergraduate at Lake Forest College (Illinois), focusing on French and Russian literature. He also holds an MBA in International Finance and Accounting from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (California), where he completed his MBA (in French). In addition to French, J.D. also speaks Spanish, and limited German and Hebrew. He has worked in finance, International Mergers and Acquisitions, and purchase accounting in large international and national organizations including Microsoft, Banfield, and others before becoming a novelist. He now devotes his full-time to writing. He also has race bibs from two full marathons and over thirty half marathons, and he plays the piccolo and flute, and he writes music. For more information on J.D., his books and Curious Blue Press, go to:
http://www.amazon.com/J.D.-Horn/e/B00FDZMK0U/ (andFacebook.com/jackdouglashorn)