Barbara Ann Corcoran

 Barbara Ann Corcoran (born March 10 1949) is an American businesswoman investor, speaker, consultant, syndicated columnist, TV personality, author and author. The Corcoran Group was a New York City real estate brokerage that she started. NRT purchased it for $66million in 2001. Corcoran later left the business. One of the original "Shark" investors, Corcoran has appeared in the entire 12 seasons of ABC's Shark Tank until now. As of February 2020 she had closed 53 deals. The largest of these was a purchase of $350,000 in Coverplay at 40%. Corcoran was the second child of 10 children born to an Irish Catholic couple of working class living in Edgewater, New Jersey.  Her mother, Florence, was a homemaker. Edwin W. Corcoran Jr. was her father. He was a mover from one job to the next during Corcoran’s childhood. At times, her family relied on the delivery of food that was free from a local grocer. Corcoran remembers her father as one who sometimes was a drinker and did her mother a disservice and condescension, particularly after he'd consumed alcohol. Corcoran struggled at school and later learned that she had dyslexia. Corcoran went to an Catholic elementary school in her community and started high school in St. Cecilia High School, Englewood. After flunking several courses during her first year of high school, Corcoran transferred to Leonia High School in Leonia, where she was a D-student when she graduated.