Obit of Gaylord, Edward L. - Oklahoma County, Oklahoma Submitted by: Gene Phillips 11 Feb 2007 Return to Oklahoma County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/oklahoma/oklahoma.html ===================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ===================================================================== ::NOT LISTED Gaylord, Edward L. Edward L. Gaylord, 83, a civic leader and a publishing and media giant, died Sunday night at OU Medical Center of complications from cancer. His loving family surrounded him. Gaylord was chairman and CEO of The Oklahoma Publishing Co. and had been editor and publisher of The Oklahoman since 1974. Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. He was the son of frontier Oklahoma City newspaper publisher, E.K. Gaylord and Inez Kinney Gaylord. He had been involved in the newspaper for many years before he inherited the publishing company in 1974 and he used his keen business insight to build a media and entertainment empire. This year is the centennial of The Oklahoma Publishing Co. and in a special section published in February, Gaylord summed up his life. 'I don't believe there is any other person in the state who had a better life than I have in Oklahoma. I am a very lucky guy,' he said. It would be impossible to describe Gaylord in just a few words, but President George W. Bush came close when he coined the phrase 'compassionate conservative.' Readers of The Oklahoman's opinion page were well aware of Gaylord's conservative views. Oklahoma charities, arts organizations, medical foundations and education institutions were beneficiaries of his compassionate and generous nature. Many of his donations were given quietly and without publicity. Believing that education was the key to opportunity, Gaylord was constantly looking for ways to help students obtain college educations. In April 2000, the University of Oklahoma announced Gaylord and his family had donated $22 million to enable the university to build a 'world class college of journalism and mass communications.' Part of the donation was earmarked for scholarships. Gaylord, himself, earned a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and attended Harvard Business School. He started work at The Oklahoman when he was 17 years old and came back to it full time after serving in the military during World War II. His career with the company spanned nearly 60 years. In addition to his work at the newspaper, he became heavily involved in civic activities. In 1961, when the State Fair of Oklahoma was on the brink of financial collapse, Gaylord took over as president. Within 10 years, the fair became one of the most profitable in the country. He also served as president of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce. In acquiring radio and television stations, Gaylord learned about the entertainment business. In 1983, Gaylord purchased the giant Opryland complex in Nashville, Tenn. To speed up growth and development of his entertainment ventures, he created Gaylord Entertainment Co. as a publicly traded company. As chairman of Oklahoma Industries Authority for more than 30 years, Gaylord played an active role in helping bring more than 100,000 jobs and $1 billion in facilities to the Oklahoma City area, including the General Motors manufacturing plant. He also contributed greatly to Oklahoma City's National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum to make it one of the finest western art museums in the world. In 1991, he and his employees moved into a new 12-story office building for The Oklahoman, which is regarded as one of the finest newspaper facilities in the world. Friends, however, have said Gaylord's greatest legacy may not be the buildings he built or the businesses he managed and created, but the four children he and his wife raised to have the same commitment to their community that Gaylord and his father had. Gaylord was preceded in death by his wife, Thelma, his parents, a sister, Edith Kinney Gaylord and a grandson, Jimmy Everest. He is survived by four children and their spouses: Christy Everest and her husband, Jim; Louise Bennett and her husband Clayton I., all of Oklahoma City; E.K. Gaylord II and his wife, Natalie, of Edmond; Mary McClean and her husband, Jeff, of Simpsonville, KY; and nine grandchildren, Mary FitzSimons and her husband, Colin of Chicago; Tricia Everest, Mollie Bennett, Christy Bennett, Graham Bennett, E.L. Gaylord II, E.K. Gaylord III, Donald Grant Gaylord and Nicholas Hunt Gaylord and his special friend, Jose Freede, all of Oklahoma City. He is also survived by a sister, Virginia Neely of Cashiers, N.C. The family would like to thank Dr. Howard Ozer, director of the planned Cancer Center at the OU Medical Center, nurses at the Cade Cancer Center, especially Terry, Rise', Michele and Sherry and the doctors and nurses at the ICU at the OU Medical Center. The family also wants to thank Ida Mae Breath who assisted Edward L. Gaylord at home and his administrative assistant, Linda Walker Brown. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, 1700 NE 63, Oklahoma City, OK 73106; the Oklahoma Heritage Association, 201 NW 14, Oklahoma City, OK 73103; the YMCA, 500 N Broadway, Oklahoma City, OK 73102; and the Children's Medical Research Foundation, in care of the Children's Medical Research Institute, 800 NE 15, Suite 220, Oklahoma City, OK 73104. Published in the Oklahoman from 4/29/2003 - 4/30/2003. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to Oklahoma County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/oklahoma/oklahoma.html