The VC firm Greylock Partners is backed by a group of rich families
and some universities.  Who are the families?

Hi bugbear:

I'm afraid these VC firms are typically closed-mouthed about who their
limited partners are.

I was able to find the following tidbit about some of the original
investors in Greylock Partners:

Greylock
URL: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/pubitem.jhtml?id=3759&t=leadership
Quote: "In a matter of months, Elfers brought five prominent families
into the fold, including inventor and financier Sherman Fairchild of
Fairchild Camera and Instrument; Hotchkiss School classmate Arthur
('Dick') Watson and his brother Tom, the head of IBM; and several
members of Cleveland's Corning clan, whose assets came from, among
other things, oil and banking. In 1966, with the addition of the
Ayer-Rice Trust, which oversaw the fortunes of two old New England
families, the roster of original limited partners was in place. (By
the 1980s, six more families had been added to the group.)"

I hope that helps. 

websearcher