M. Larry Lawrence
| M. Larry Lawrence | |
|---|---|
| United States Ambassador to Switzerland | |
|
In office February 9, 1994 – January 9, 1996 |
|
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Joseph Bernard Gildenhorn |
| Succeeded by | Madeleine M. Kunin |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Maurice Larry Lawrence August 16, 1926 Chicago, Illiinois |
| Died | January 9, 1996 (aged 69) Bern, Switzerland |
| Resting place | El Camino Memorial Park, Sorrento Valley, San Diego |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Sheila Davis |
| Occupation | Real estate developer |
Maurice Larry Lawrence (August 16, 1926 – January 9, 1996) was a United States Ambassador to Switzerland and real estate developer. In 1991, Forbes magazine named Lawrence among the 400 richest Americans and estimated his fortune at $315 million.
Lawrence was born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, and moved to San Diego, California in 1953. He married Geraldine Slesnick in 1949, with whom he had three children. He was in his fourth marriage at the time of his death, to the former Sheila Davis from Brushfork, West Virginia. They had been married since June, 1990.
Lawrence has three daughters, a son and six grandchildren.
Lawrence attended Wilbur Wright College in 1945 and the University of Arizona from 1945 through 1947. A biography entry for Lawrence appeared in Who's Who indicating he had graduated from the University of Arizona in 1947 with a bachelor of arts degree. The University said, however, that Lawrence attended classes there for two years and played varsity football, but left without a degree.
San Diego millionaire John Alessio sold the deteriorating Hotel del Coronado to Lawrence in 1963. Lawrence's initial plan was to develop the land around the hotel and ultimately, to demolish it. Lawrence later changed his mind. During his tenure, Lawrence invested $150 million to refurbish and expand much of the hotel. He doubled its capacity to 700 rooms. He added the Grande Hall Convention Center and two seven-story Ocean Towers just south of the hotel. Lawrence has been known to claim that L. Frank Baum wrote part of The Wizard of Oz at the hotel and that Thomas Edison supervised the wiring of parts of the hotel, neither of which were true. The Lawrence family sold the hotel to the Travelers Group after his death in 1996.
Lawrence's first involvement in politics was his work in the 1948 Adlai E. Stevenson II gubernatorial campaign in Illinois. He continued his political activities in California, gaining power and influence in Democratic political circles as a campaign contributor and fund-raiser.
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