Nationality United States Name George Argyros Predecessor Edward L. Romero Children three Successor Eduardo Aguirre | Spouse(s) Julia Argyros Net worth 2.1 billion USD (2015) Ethnicity Greek Education Chapman University | |
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Full Name George Leon Argyros Born 1937 (age 77–78) Detroit, Michigan Occupation Ambassador, real estate investor, and the former owner of the Seattle Mariners Similar People C Dean Metropoulos, Nathan Lewis, Michael Jaharis, John Catsimatidis, Dennis J Gil | ||
Interview with george argyros about greece and us politics
George Leon Argyros (born 1937) is a former United States Ambassador to Spain. He is also a real estate investor, and was the owner of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners from 1981 to 1989.
Contents
- Interview with george argyros about greece and us politics
- Julia and george argyros emergency department at choc
- Early and personal life
- Business
- Politics
- Baseball
- Philanthropy
- References
Julia and george argyros emergency department at choc
Early and personal life
George Argyros was born in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in Pasadena, California. Argyros is a second-generation American citizen; his grandparents emigrated from Greece. Argyros graduated from Chapman University in 1959 with a major in Business and Economics. He later served on the board of trustees of that university, including chairman of the board from 1976 to 2001. The Chapman University, Argyros School of Business and Economics is named in his honor.
He and his wife, Julia, have three grown children and seven grandchildren.
Business
Argyros made his fortune in real estate investments. He originally started his business career running a grocery store and moved on to buying and selling real estate to gas stations. He also was involved in buying and selling property in Southern California. From 1981 to 1989 he was the owner of the Seattle Mariners baseball team. He has been on the board of directors of many corporations.
Argyros has done business through the real estate company Arnel & Affiliates (DBA "Arnel Property Management Company"). Arnel & Affiliates does business primarily in Southern California. Through his business practices Argyros has achieved a net worth around $1 billion.
Politics
Argyros served as a member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations for the U.S. Trade Ambassador, resigning that position in 1990, when President Bush appointed him to the board of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FreddieMac). He completed his term on the FreddieMac Board in March 1993.
In 2001 Argyros was appointed Ambassador to Spain and Andorra. He was sworn in on November 21, 2001. Many viewed the appointment as a political reward for his fund raising efforts for the Republican Party.
Baseball
In 1981, Argyros bought the Seattle Mariners. The team had struggled from inception in 1977 as an expansion team. He ran the team on a shoestring budget and talked about moving the team elsewhere. Argyros sold the team to Jeff Smulyan in 1989. Argyros had openly tried to purchase the San Diego Padres in 1987 and to sell the Mariners, but a final deal was never consummated with Padres owner Joan Kroc.
Philanthropy
In October 2013, George and Julia Argyros announced two $1 million donations benefiting the arts in Julia's hometown of Adrian, Michigan. One was to help kick off a $3.5 million capital campaign for the Croswell Opera House and another was to benefit a fine arts education endowment through the Adrian Schools Educational Foundation.
Argyros is on the Board of Directors of the Richard Nixon Foundation, which operates the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, California; he is also a longtime trustee of his alma mater Chapman University. He is a trustee of California Institute of Technology and also a board-member for the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.