Film executive, equestrian established Piñon Farm in Santa Fe
Film executive, equestrian, Phoenix Suns co-founder and philanthropist Richard L. Bloch died Saturday morning at Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center after complications from a fall. He was 89.
While his businesses and other interests took him around the country, Bloch had lived in Santa Fe since 1973.
He established Piñon Farm, a horsebreeding and training farm, in 1982, and became involved with the Museum of New Mexico Foundation, serving as a regent.
His wife, Nancy Bloch, said the couple fell in love with the cultural riches of the Santa Fe area. The Amy Rose Bloch Wing of Museum of Indian Arts & Culture and Laboratory of Anthropology on Museum Hill was named after their deceased daughter, she added.
“He was a remarkable man with a multitude of interests and performed well in everything he did,” Nancy Bloch said. “He devoted his life to doing good work.”
Richard Bloch was born in Michigan in 1929. After graduating from the University of Chicago in 1949, he attended law school at the University of Arizona for a year before serving in the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigade of the U.S. Army from 1951-53, during the Korean War.
Bloch was the president and CEO of Filmways, a television and multimedia company. Through this work, he was involved in various broadcast projects and served on several boards. He was a co-owner of the NBC-affiliated KVOA
television station in Tucson, Ariz., and was a trustee of the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, the American Ballet Theatre in New York City and La Jolla Playhouse near San Diego.
He also co-owned radio stations in Santa Fe.
Bloch co-founded the Phoenix Suns in 1968 and served as chairman of the NBA Board of Governors.
From 1976 to 2017, he was the director of City National Bank in Beverly Hills, Calif., and he co-developed the first hotel near the Los Angeles International Airport.
President Bill Clinton appointed Bloch to the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board in 1995 because of his support for the Democrat Party, his wife said.
Through the years, Bloch continued his work with horses and competing in show jumping.
He served on the board of the U.S. Equestrian Team for the Olympics, directed the American Grand Prix Association and served on the 22nd District Agriculture Association in California, which oversees the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
Bloch also served on the board of trustees for Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center.
He received the New Mexico Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts in 1997 as a major contributor to the arts.
“He lived a wonderful life,” Nancy Bloch said.
Along with his wife, Richard Bloch is survived by his two sons, Jonathan and Andrew Bloch.
A celebration of life will be held for Richard Bloch at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture. In lieu of flowers, the family requests any gifts to be directed to the Museum of New Mexico Foundation.