'Oracle of oil' T. Boone Pickens dies at 91

T. Boone Pickens, a celebrated corporate raider and energy industry magnate who made an empire out of an initial $2,500 investment, died on Wednesday at age 91, his spokesman said. The Oklahoma-born tycoon, known for his folksy speech and ruthless business acumen, died of natural causes. He had suffered from health problems following a fall in 2017.

Pickens announced in January last year that he was closing his BP Capital energy hedge fund because of declining health, although he had "no intention of fading away." He previously had acknowledged having several strokes in late 2016 and in July 2017 suffered a fall that required hospitalization. Plans for memorial services in Dallas, Texas, and Stillwater, Oklahoma, are pending, according to a statement on his web site. Pickens died at approximately 1:30 p.m. ET (1730 GMT), his spokesman, Jay Rosser, said.