Richard Riordan, mayor of los angeles who rose to the challenge of uniting the city after the Rodney King riots and rebuilding it after the 1994 Northridge earthquake, died Wednesday at the age of 92, his family announced.
Riordan “passed away peacefully this evening at his home in Brentwood, surrounded by his wife Elizabeth, family, friends and precious dogs,” his family announced on Wednesday evening. Riordan was 92 years old.
Riordan, the only Republican to hold the nonpartisan position since 1961 when Norris Poulson lost a bid for a third term, was elected in 1993, replacing Tom Bradley, who held the position for a 20-year term.
Thirty years ago, South-Central Los Angeles erupted in violence and flames during riots that erupted after four Los Angeles police officers were found ‘not guilty’ after beating Rodney King.
Riordan took office just over a year after riots followed the verdict in the state trial of Los Angeles Police Department officers accused of beating motorist Rodney King, then had to face to another challenge during his first year on the charge: the 1994 Northridge earthquake.
“Mayor Richard Riordan loved Los Angeles and was very dedicated to improving our city,” Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement.
“He has always had a place in his heart for the children of Los Angeles and has worked to improve how the city serves our youth and our communities as a passionate member of the Los Angeles Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners.
“Mayor Riordan’s legacy includes our city’s iconic Central Library, which he saved and rebuilt, and which today bears his name.
“After the Northridge earthquake, Mayor Riordan set the standard for emergency response. He reassured us and gave us a response with an intensity that still pushes us all to be faster and stronger in the midst of the crisis.
“Although he was born in New York, Mayor Riordan will be remembered as a native of Los Angeles.”
Riordan was born May 1, 1930 and raised in New Rochelle, NY He was the youngest of eight children in an Irish Catholic family.
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In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, he said one of his most vivid childhood memories of the Depression was seeing unemployed workers coming to the family’s back door looking for food or work. He attended an all-male Jesuit preparatory school where links and Latin were required.
He attended Santa Clara University, where he played on the football team. After two years in Santa Clara, he transferred to Princeton. After his time at Princeton, he served in the military in Korea and graduated at the top of his class from the University of Michigan Law School.
Riordan married Eugenia “Genie” Warady at a New York resort and moved to Southern California. They had five children and he started a law firm, eventually founding Riordan & McKinzie.
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He became a political player in the 1980s, loaning $300,000 to Tom Bradley’s gubernatorial campaign and serving on the Colosseum and city recreation and parks commissions. He also helped lead a successful campaign to oust State Supreme Court Justice Rose Elizabeth Bird in 1986.
Two of Riordan’s sons died during his rise in political circles.
Billy, their only son, died in a diving accident off the east coast days before his 22nd birthday. Their daughter Carol died of an eating disorder aged 19.
Riordan has been married four times. He was married to Genie Riordan for 23 years before the Catholic Church annulled the marriage. He married Jill Noel in 1990, child activist Nancy Daly in 1998 and then-Harvard-Westlake School admissions officer Elizabeth Gregory in 2017.
Riordan is survived by his wife; three children, Mary Elizabeth Riordan, Kathleen Ann Riordan and Patricia Riordan Torrey; three grandchildren, Luca, Jessica and Elizabeth; and a sister, Mary Elizabeth Riordan Hearty.