John Rockefeller Prentice John Rockefeller Prentice John Rockefeller Prentice (December 17, 1902 – June 13, 1972) was born to Chicago lawyer Ezra Parmalee Prentice and Alta Rockefeller Prentice in New York. Prentice's maternal grandfather is the Standard Oil tycoon, John D. Rockefeller (1839–1937). While attending Yale University, Prentice became a member of the Skull and Bones society and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He graduated in 1928. During his years at Yale, Prentice had accumulated debts and consequently was cut off from his parents. He worked in Boston for a wholesale hardware firm for four years to make enough money to return
Nelson Rockefeller 1935–40. From 1932 to 1979 he served as a trustee of the Museum of Modern Art, where he also served as treasurer, 1935–39, and president, 1939–41 and 1946–53. He and his four brothers established the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, a philanthropy, in 1940, where he served as trustee, 1940–75 and 1977–79, and as president in 1956. Rockefeller was a patient of famous psychic Edgar Cayce. Rockefeller served as a member of the Westchester County Board of Health, 1933–53. His service with Creole Petroleum led to his deep, lifelong interest in Latin America. He became fluent in the Spanish language. In 1940,