By Danielle Beurteaux
Leon Cooperman is one of the few hedge fund managers whose name is often prefaced with the word "legendary." As an investor, he knows a good opportunity when he sees it. As a philanthropist, he doesn't hesitate to help out when the opportunity arises.
When Dale Frey took the helm at the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation board and needed some new talent, he went right to Cooperman. Frey, former chairman of the board and president of General Electric Investment Corporation, knew Cooperman from his days at Goldman Sachs, where Cooperman was a general partner before founding Omega Advisors, the now-$4.5 billion fund, in 1991. Cooperman didn't hesitate to jump on...