Edgar M. Bronfman, who led the Seagram liquor company for 23 years before stepping down to turn his full attention to Jewish causes, has died at 84, his family said Sunday.
During his reign, the company, previously run by his father, Sam Bronfman, branched out into other drinks ranging from fine wines to orange juice.
After stepping down in 1994, Edgar led a foundation named for his father that worked to promote Jewish education around the world.
Bronfman also served as President of the World Jewish Congress, where he advocated for freedom for Jews who were living in the former Soviet Union.
In 1986, he helped expose the Nazi past of Kurt Waldheim, then the president of Austria and a former secretary-general of the United Nations.
Bill Clinton awarded Bronfman the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1999.
His family said he died peacefully at his home in New York.