[ CLICK HERE FOR UPDATES ON LYON'S CONDITION ]
Homebuilder William Lyon collapsed shortly after 1 p.m. today while delivering a speech at a benefit luncheon at the Irvine Hilton, according to Register sports columnist Randy Youngman, who was attending the event.
Lyon, 85, the William Lyon Homes chairman who spearheaded numerous local political and charitable groups, was delivering an address during the Orangewood Children’s Foundation’s 11th Annual Ambassadors luncheon when his knees suddenly buckled and he fell to the floor.
Youngman, who was attending to cover sports figures on the program, gave this account:
The luncheon honors and recognizes Orangewood Ambassadors, or “philanthropic partners whose donations support the foundation’s efforts with foster children and teens.”
Keynote speaker was Jim Abbott, former Angels pitcher born without a right hand.
This year’s honorees were Michele and Tim Ryan. Ryan is on Orangewood’s board of directors and is president/CEO of Anaheim Arena Management and Chief Operating Officer of the Anaheim Ducks hockey club. Among those in attendance: Susan Samueli and Michael Schulman of the Ducks, Arte Moreno and Tony Reagins of the Angels.
Lyon, founding chairman and CEO of the Orange Children’s Foundation, was scheduled to be the last speaker of the luncheon. He was called to the lectern after Abbott had spoken and after an Orangewood Children’s group home resident and scholarship winner had delivered their inspirational messages.
When he got to the lectern, Lyon made several jokes that elicited laughter from the packed ballroom:
- “I’m happy to be here. When you’re my age, you’re happy to be ANYWHERE.”
- “Somebody asked me today if I’ve lived in Orange County my whole life. I said I don’t know yet.”
- He also lamented having to follow such inspirational speakers and being another in a long line of banquet speakers, saying “If you laid all the speakers end to end . . . it would probably be a good idea.”
He was at the lectern talking about the struggles of fund-raising efforts for the Foundation in the early years when his knees buckled, then he fell face-down to his left, hitting the floor very hard.
As doctors in the crowd began working on him, an announcement was made thanking everyone for attending and asking the crowd to disperse. Someone was performing CPR on him as I left the room. Paramedics from the fire department arrived within minutes, as well as an ambulance.
The Orange County Fire Authority reported getting the emergency call at 1:05 p.m. An Irvine police spokesman said Lyon was listed in stable condition at Hoag Memorial Hospital in Newport Beach.
An off-duty firefighter and an off-duty police officer were in the audience at the time and came to Lyon’s aid until paramedics arrive, fire authority spokesman Greg McKeown said.
Lyon is one of the most influential men in Orange County, his name appearing at one time on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans.
In addition to building more than 100,000 homes in California, Arizona and Nevada, he donated millions to charities and led an $8 million campaign for the Orangewood home for abused and neglected children. He also has been a leading donor for causes as varied as the Orange County Performing Arts Center and the Reagan presidential library.
He was a co-owner of AirCal airlines in the 1980s and a co-founder of the New Majority, a group of local GOP leaders.
Lyon shares a 134-acre estate in Coto de Caza with his wife, Willa Dean, living in a half-acre colonial mansion.
He is a retired U.S. Air Force Reserves commander who co-founded the homebuilding firm that bears his name.
He was in good enough health last spring to pilot a vintage B-17 bomber on a two-day flight to Washington, D.C. Once there, he joined a four-plane formation that zoomed over the Air Force Memorial to honor American airmen who died in the line of duty.
Lyon served as a pilot in World War II, but didn’t see action until Korea, where he flew 75 combat missions in C-46 and C-47 transport planes.
In 1954, he joined his father and brother in founding what became William Lyon Homes, building homes for returning military personnel. He went on to build much of Orange County and may have built more homes here than any other builder.
The company nearly went bankrupt during the 1990s housing slump, but survived and experienced record profits in 2005, just before the current slump began sapping company earnings again.
Lyon, the company’s chief shareholder, took the company private in July 2006, spending at least $186.5 million buying up outstanding shares.
Aside from his business and civic activities, Lyon — an imposing 6-foot-tall man friends and associates called “the general” — is known for his collection of 100 vintage cars and for developing a future aviation museum next to John Wayne Airport. His car collection includes a 12-cylinder 1935 Packard, a 1908 Bugatti and several Duesenbergs.
Other William Lyon and William Lyon Homes news …
- O.C. icon William Lyon will pilot a B-17 from John Wayne to D.C.
- O.C. builder buys its own debt at 77% discount
- Is housing cyclical, or good shot at profits?
- Lyon Homes prices fall 11% in Q2
- Lyon to mothball 10 projects
Other real estate news …
- O.C. brokers bet $2 million on luxury-home office
- Stable for 12 horses? Seller seeks $8 million for Coto estate
- Wall St. woes could smack Newport Beach
- O.C. home values ranked 7th in nation
- Dana Point beach project may take in $680 million
- Obama win tied to states with 4-of-5 of U.S. foreclosures
- 1-in-4 Calif. homeowners lost their equity
- Mid-Oct. O.C. home price at July ‘03 level
- O.C. property broker cuts 100 sellers, hiring 100 new ones
- Tell us ‘Who’s to blame for housing’s mess?’
- Higher-priced O.C. homesellers continue to discount
Our prayers are with the Lyon family.
God bless him and the people of the city of Irvine.
The closest facility would be Irvine Medical Center.
Ironically, it is the same medical center that is scheduled to close because Tenet Healthcare chose not to renew the ground lease.
Emergency healthcare is needed for all.
Will Hoag Hospital or Kaiser be running ER in Irvine without IMC?
If he did not go to IMC, he would be taken to Saddleback Memorial Hospital, Hoag Memorial Presbyterian, St. Joseph’s Hospital, or Orange Coast Memorial.
None are closer than 30 minutes.
Very best wishes to Mr. Lyon and his family. I met him once and he’s a very kind, gracious man.
I wonder if he’ll still make the mashed potatoes at Thankgiving this year. He always made them so creamy and buttery….. and cousin Sloan always helped. Good luch to Bill.
Kudos to Whitaker Wellness whose patients stay at the Hilton, for having a defibrillator available. Best wishes to Mr. Lyon.
Prior to the Orange County Fire Authority’s arrival, Don Boland, an off duty firefighter paramedic with the Huntington Beach Fire Department performed CPR on Mr. Lyon. Don was attending the function representing the Huntington Beach Firefighter’s Association. He saw him collapse and immediately rushed to him and began CPR with the assistance of some other citizens. It did not appear there were any medical doctors there.
Unrelated to this incident I hope Lyon Homes helps out all those people who got screwed by homebuilders in the recent OC housing collapse.
Our prayers for the Lyon family and the specialists at Hoag in Newport Beach.
Trust me even if Irvine Regional were still around he would be better off driving right past it for another 20 minutes or whatever it took to get somewhere else.
Sometimes you are better off going to a good hospital then a close one.
The DDDR pacemaker is the greatest thing to EP cardio since sliced bread.
doublechin, developer land costs were the culprit along with funny financing packages. Builders were stuck with unrealistically high land prices for a few year. Think of it like this: when gas was $4.55 a gallon, you still had to buy it if you wanted to drive to work.
the good news is mr lyons has survived (for the time being)-
the bad news is mr lyons condition is better than that
of the US economy- which has entered collapse mode
itself- but not to fear the prezident elect is gonna come
up with a new “stimulus” package - sorry barak but they
havent made a defribillator big enough to revive this heart
attack- what we need are some really bright people- sorta
like mulligan- who always have all the answers to all the problems-
aint that right mulli-
Kudo’s to all those who snapped into action including Matt Coleman of Lennar Charitable Housing Foundation. Without you’re quick response this article may have taken an entirely different tone.
Thank you !
haha rants you need to make more funny comments….
Are there any updates from Hoag on how the General is doing?
The Lyon Family would like to thank our many friends in the Orange County community for their overwhelming outpouring of support and well wishes. As you may know, General William Lyon, collapsed Friday during a speech and was rushed to Hoag Hospital for treatment. It was determined that General Lyon suffered an arrhythmia. Tests have confirmed that he did not suffer a heart attack or stroke and thankfully has none of the associated damage. Thanks to the quick action of those in the audience at the event and the paramedics who rapidly arrived on the scene, General Lyon is alert and looking forward to making a full recovery. We are thankful for the great care he is receiving at Hoag Hospital and are happy to announce that General Lyon will be resuming his very busy schedule after a short recovery period.
Again, we appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers.