Biography of Michael Dell

From The Associated Press

Brief biography of Michael S. Dell, chairman and chief executive of Dell Inc.

Born: February 23, 1965, in Houston to an orthodontist and a stockbroker. Made his first $1,000 by selling stamps at age 12, and sold newspaper subscriptions for the now-defunct Houston Post.

Education: Attended the University of Texas and started a computer business in his dormitory room. Dropped out in 1984 to focus on building the company by emphasizing direct sales to customers rather than going through retail middlemen.

Notable: In 1992, Dell became the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

Pay: In the company's 2006 fiscal year, he was paid a $950,000 salary, a $1.8 million bonus and $1 million in other compensation. As of May 5, 2006, he owned 216.3 million shares and held options exercisable in the next 60 days on 9.8 million more shares. He owned 9.88 percent of all the company's outstanding shares.

Wealth: Estimated at $15.5 billion.

Philanthropy: With his wife, he formed the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, which has an endowment of more than $1 billion and focuses on children's issues.

Sources: Dell Inc. Web site, company filings, Michael and Susan Dell Foundation Web site, AP archives.