The amazing life of billionaire 'Cable Cowboy' John Malone, the single largest landowner in the US

AP

John Malone owns more land in America than anyone.

You may not know his name, but chances are you've used a service or watched a channel with connections to John C. Malone.

The largest individual landowner in the US, Malone is the chairman of Liberty Media and has interests as wide ranging as race cars, the Discovery Channel, and the Atlanta Braves.

Here's a taste of his diverse interests:

• He is largest stakeholder of Liberty Media, which is worth $24 billion.
• He owns 28% of Discovery Communications, which just sealed a $14.6 billion deal for Scripps.
• He owns a quarter of Liberty Global, the largest international cable company with 29 million subscribers.
• He owns 8% of the publicly traded Atlanta Braves.
• He owns 2.2 million acres of land, making him the single largest landowner in the US.

But the media mogul wasn't just born into his $9.22 billion net worth. Here's how one of the richest and most powerful people in American business rose to prominence.