Thomas Lee, Billionaire Private Equity Pioneer, Dies at 78
- Drew acclaim for 1992 Snapple deal that brought giant return
- Avoided corporate raider-style radical cost-cutting measures
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Thomas H. Lee, a billionaire who pioneered private-equity deals and leveraged buyouts through a firm that bore his name, has died. He was 78.
Lee died Thursday at his office in New York. His death was ruled a suicide by gunshot wound to the head, Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner, said in an email.