A Conversation with Oscar Tang on Business, Art, and Civic Leadership

For the Ages: A History Podcast

For the Ages: A History Podcast
A Conversation with Oscar Tang on Business, Art, and Civic Leadership
Mar 30, 2026 Season 5 Episode 15
The New York Historical

Born in wartime Shanghai and brought to the United States at age eleven with no knowledge of English, financier and philanthropist Oscar Tang reflects on a life shaped by displacement, ambition, and civic responsibility. In conversation with David M. Rubenstein, Tang recounts his journey from a small town in Vermont to Yale and Harvard, before building a successful career on Wall Street. He also discusses the experiences that shaped his philanthropic commitments—from supporting cultural institutions like the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Museum of Art to helping strengthen educational and civic institutions across the United States.

Recorded on February 20, 2026