Meet the Five Richest Coloradans Right Now

Update: Each year around this time, Forbes magazine reveals the identities of the wealthiest people on the planet — and since 2014, we've highlighed the five richest Coloradans according to their position on what's popularly known as the Forbes 400.

At first glance, the updated Forbes list seems static from a Colorado perspective. The same five people appear on the roster, and in the same order, as in 2014 and our most recent update, published in February.

However, there have been some shifts in fortune when it comes to comparisons with their 395 other well-moneyed peers. Three Coloradans moved up on the roster (the fifth-placer is up sixty slots in two years), one slid a bit, and the top dog stayed firm — although his net worth as of yesterday was $300 million lower than his 2015 total.

Poor guy.

Our introductions to the five include Forbes data from 2014 to 2016 and small excerpts from their respective bios.

Click to see the complete Forbes 400 roster.


Number 5: Pat Stryker
Real Time Net Worth As of 10/5/16
$2.6 Billion
2015 Forbes 400 Net Worth
$2.3 Billion
Age 60
Source of Wealth: Medical equipment
Residence: Fort Collins, CO
Marital Status: Divorced
Children: 3
Education: Drop Out, University of Northern Colorado
2014 Forbes 400 ranking: 324
2015 Forbes 400 ranking: 293
2016 Forbes 400 ranking: 264

Pat Stryker inherited a chunk of Stryker Corp., the $9.9 billion (sales) medical equipment supplier founded by her grandfather Homer (d. 1980). He was the inventor of the modern hospital bed. A resident of Fort Collins, Colo., Pat Stryker is the founder of Bohemian Foundation, which funds music and youth programs in her hometown. In early 2016, she sold her small Stryker Sonoma winery in northern California....


Number 4: James Leprino
Real Time Net Worth As of 10/5/16
$2.9 Billion
2015 Forbes 400 Net Worth
$3 Billion
Chairman, Leprino Foods
Age: 78
Source of Wealth: Cheese
Residence: Indian Hills, CO
Citizenship United States
Marital Status: Married
Children: 2
2014 Forbes 400 ranking: 194
2015 Forbes 400 ranking: 211
2016 Forbes 400 ranking: 232

Son of immigrants from southern Italy, James Leprino owns the world's largest mozzarella cheese maker. His Leprino Foods sells ingredients to Domino's, Papa John's, Pizza Hut and Little Caesar's. The company is completing construction of a $300 million processing facility in Northern Colorado, which will produce more than 500,000 pounds of cheese a day when it is completed in 2017....

Continue to meet the three richest Coloradans right now.


Number 3: John Malone
Real Time Net Worth As of 10/5/16
$7.2 Billion
2015 Forbes 400 Net Worth
$7.2 Billion
Age: 75
Source of Wealth: Cable television, Self Made
Residence: Elizabeth, CO
Marital Status: Married
Children: 2
Education Bachelor of Arts / Science, Yale University; Doctorate, Johns Hopkins University; Master of Science, Johns Hopkins University
2014 Forbes 400 ranking: 60
2015 Forbes 400 ranking: 68
2016 Forbes 400 ranking: 61

The cowboy cable king is wheeling and dealing again. John Malone's Liberty Media, which owns MLB's Atlanta Braves, reached an agreement in September 2016 to buy auto-racing league Formula One for $4.4 billion. In May 2016, the Federal Communications Commission approved his Charter Communications' $85 billion merger with Time Warner, and also its $12.2 billion acquisition of cable TV company Bright House Networks....


Number 2: Philip Anschutz
Real Time Net Worth As of 10/5/16
$10.9 Billion
2015 Forbes 400 Net Worth
$10.9 Billion
Age: 76
Source of Wealth: Investments, Self Made
Residence: Denver, CO
Marital Status: Married
Children: 3
Education: Bachelor of Arts / Science, University of Kansas
2014 Forbes 400 ranking: 40
2015 Forbes 400 ranking: 43
2016 Forbes 400 ranking: 39

Over five decades, Phil Anschutz has built fortunes in oil, railroads, telecom, real estate and entertainment. He started with his dad's small oil business, which nearly collapsed. He now owns the NHL's Kings and a third of the Lakers, plus the building they play in, the Staples Center. His movie company produced the Chronicles of Narnia series. His AEG Live reps music artists and produces their concert tours....


Number 1: Charles Ergen
Real Time Net Worth As of 10/5/16
$16.1 Billion
2015 Forbes 400 Net Worth
$16.4 Billion
Founder and Chairman, DISH Network
Age 63
Source of Wealth: Satellite TV, Self Made
Residence Denver, CO
Citizenship United States
Marital Status: Married
Children:5
Education: Bachelor of Arts / Science, University of Tennessee Knoxville; Master of Business Administration, Wake Forest University School of Business
2014 Forbes 400 ranking: 26
2015 Forbes 400 ranking: 28
2016 Forbes 400 ranking: 28

Charlie Ergen retook the CEO job at satellite TV provider DISH Network in early 2015, nearly four years after he stepped back to the chairman's role. The company, which he founded, has 14 million subscribers. He is the son of an Austrian nuclear physicist who worked at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn., where Ergen grew up. After college, Ergen became a professional gambler, but apparently got thrown out of a Las Vegas casino for counting cards in blackjack....