Lewis was born on this day in Baltimore, Maryland. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1968. He was a partner in Murphy, Thorpes& Lewis, the first black law firm on Wall Street. In 1989 he became president and CEO of TLC Beatrice International food Company, Lewis became the head of the largest black-owned business in the United States. TLC Beatrice had revenues of $1.54 billion in 1992