# Edward Gaylord > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Gaylord > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Gaylord.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Gaylord > Source revision: 1343483148 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|American billionaire businessman, media mogul and philanthropist}} {{for|his father, the newspaper owner and publisher|Edward K. Gaylord}} {{More citations needed|date=August 2008}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2019}} {{Infobox person |name = Edward Gaylord |image = |caption = |birth_name = Edward Lewis Gaylord |birth_date = {{Birth date|1919|05|28|mf=yes}} |birth_place = [Oklahoma City](/source/Oklahoma_City), Oklahoma, United States |death_date = {{Death date and age|2003|04|27|1919|05|28}} |death_place = [Oklahoma City](/source/Oklahoma_City), Oklahoma, United States |alma_mater = |education = |occupation = |years_active = |boards = |children = |parents = [Edward K. Gaylord](/source/Edward_K._Gaylord) |signature = |website = }} '''Edward Lewis Gaylord ''' (May 28, 1919{{snd}}April 27, 2003) was an American billionaire businessman, [media mogul](/source/media_mogul) and philanthropist. He was the founder of the [Gaylord Entertainment Company](/source/Gaylord_Entertainment_Company) that included ''[The Oklahoman](/source/The_Oklahoman)'' newspaper, Oklahoma Publishing Co., Gaylord Hotels, the [Nashville Network](/source/Nashville_Network) TV Channel (later renamed SpikeTV, Spike, and [Paramount Network](/source/Paramount_Network) after being sold off); the [Grand Ole Opry](/source/Grand_Ole_Opry), and the [Country Music Television](/source/Country_Music_Television) Channel (CMT) as well as the defunct [Opryland USA](/source/Opryland_USA) theme park and a bankrupt airline, [Western Pacific Airlines](/source/Western_Pacific_Airlines). ==Early life== Gaylord was born on May 28, 1919, in [Oklahoma City](/source/Oklahoma_City), Oklahoma.{{cite news |last1=Naujeck |first1=Jeanne A. |last2=McCampbell |first2=Candy |title=Billionaire Edward Gaylord, 83, dies of cancer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/112664268/?terms=%22Edward%2BGaylord%22 |accessdate=June 9, 2018 |work=The Tennessean |date=April 29, 2003|page=1; 7|via=[Newspapers.com](/source/Newspapers.com)|url-access=registration }} His father, [Edward King Gaylord](/source/Edward_K._Gaylord), was the owner of ''[The Daily Oklahoman](/source/The_Oklahoman)''. Gaylord graduated from [Stanford University](/source/Stanford_University) in 1941,{{cite news |title=Edward Gaylord. Oklahoma publisher built empire |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/233950163/?terms=%22Edward%2BGaylord%22 |accessdate=June 9, 2018 |work=The Chicago Tribune |date=April 29, 2003|page=7|via=[Newspapers.com](/source/Newspapers.com)|url-access=registration }} where he earned a degree in business. He attended the [Harvard Business School](/source/Harvard_Business_School) and served in the [United States Army](/source/United_States_Army) during [World War II](/source/World_War_II). ==Career== Gaylord began his career for Oklahoma Publishing in 1946. He inherited a controlling interest in ''The Daily Oklahoman'' upon his father's death in 1974. He purchased the [Grand Ole Opry](/source/Grand_Ole_Opry) in [Nashville](/source/Nashville%2C_Tennessee), Tennessee, when it was in dire financial straits and kept it operating. He created [The Nashville Network](/source/The_Nashville_Network) TV Channel, as well as Country Music Television, or CMT, which is similar to [MTV](/source/MTV), and owned [Hee Haw](/source/Hee_Haw), a long-running country and western variety show. He was also an investor in [Texas Rangers](/source/Texas_Rangers_(baseball)) at the same time as [George W. Bush](/source/George_W._Bush). Gaylord served as the chairman of the Gaylord Entertainment Company until February 2003. Gaylord was the president of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association. He also served on the board of directors of the [American Newspaper Publishers Association](/source/American_Newspaper_Publishers_Association). As the publisher of ''The Oklahoman'', he consistently took conservative political positions in opposition to government spending, but at the same time the paper was sometimes accused of improperly dealing with conflicts of interests created by Gaylord's personal financial interests. One example was the paper's editorial support for the city to use public funds to promote the building of a new [Bass Pro Shop](/source/Bass_Pro_Shops) in Oklahoma City, while Gaylord Entertainment was then a 19.9% shareholder of Bass Pro stock. ''The Oklahoman'''s reporting on this topic again drew criticism from the ''Columbia Journalism Review''.[https://www.entrepreneur.com/tradejournals/article/111011204.html "How to Hook the Public"], ''[Columbia Journalism Review](/source/Columbia_Journalism_Review)'', Sept.-Oct. 2002, reprinted at ''[Entrepreneur.com](/source/Entrepreneur_(magazine))''. Gaylord also was a member of the conservative public policy think tank, [Council for National Policy](/source/Council_for_National_Policy).[http://www.seekgod.ca/1988cnp.htm Council For National Policy Membership Directory] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507105153/http://www.seekgod.ca/1988cnp.htm |date=May 7, 2013 }}. Retrieved March 9, 2017 ==Philanthropy== The Gaylord family of [Oklahoma City](/source/Oklahoma_City) helped found the [National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum](/source/National_Cowboy_%26_Western_Heritage_Museum) in Oklahoma City and has given the [University of Oklahoma](/source/University_of_Oklahoma) contributions totaling over $50 million in the last three decades, and founded the [Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication](/source/Gaylord_College_of_Journalism_and_Mass_Communication). The home field of the [University of Oklahoma](/source/University_of_Oklahoma) [Sooners](/source/Oklahoma_Sooners) football team was renamed [Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium](/source/Gaylord_Family_Oklahoma_Memorial_Stadium) due to their contributions.{{cite news|first=Mick|last=Hinton|title=OU regents approve stadium name change|newspaper=The Oklahoman|date=September 12, 2002|url=https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/2002/09/12/ou-regents-approve-stadium-name-change/62080014007/|archive-date=May 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528193132/https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/2002/09/12/ou-regents-approve-stadium-name-change/62080014007/|url-status=live|access-date=March 14, 2026}} {{subscription required}} ==Personal life, death and legacy== Gaylord had two sisters, Virginia and [Edith Kinney Gaylord](/source/Edith_Kinney_Gaylord), and several children, including Edward King Gaylord II, [Mary Gaylord McClean](/source/Mary_Gaylord_McClean), [Louise Gaylord Bennett](/source/Clay_Bennett_(businessman)) and [Christy Gaylord Everest](/source/Christy_Gaylord_Everest). He married Italian actress [Anna Maria Sandri](/source/Anna_Maria_Sandri) in 1956.[https://www.virginiachronicle.com/?a=d&d=BVT19560214.1.4 Bristol Virginia-Tennessean, Volume 7, Number 102, 14 February 1956] Gaylord died of cancer on April 27, 2003, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. His funeral was held at the [National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum](/source/National_Cowboy_%26_Western_Heritage_Museum). The ''Daily Oklahoman'' remained under the Gaylord family's control until the sale in 2011; the news features and editorial position of the paper reflect affiliation with ''[The Washington Examiner](/source/The_Washington_Examiner)'', which has the same owner. Edward L. Gaylord's daughters [Christy Gaylord Everest](/source/Christy_Gaylord_Everest) and [Louise Gaylord Bennett](/source/Clay_Bennett_(businessman)) remain as board members. Both sought an updated look for the paper and seemed to present more frequent opposing viewpoints on issues of public concern. The company that bore the family name, Gaylord Entertainment Company, transitioned into a [real estate investment trust](/source/real_estate_investment_trust) in 2012. As part of a long-term contract giving [Marriott International](/source/Marriott_International) the rights to manage its hotels and adjacent attractions, the company was renamed Ryman Hospitality Properties. The Gaylord name transferred to Marriott, and now exists as a brand known as [Gaylord Hotels](/source/Gaylord_Hotels), though RHP continues to own the physical properties. ==Awards and honors== *1974 – Oklahoma Hall of Fame{{cite web|title= Oklahoma Hall of Fame Member Archives |publisher=[Oklahoma Hall of Fame](/source/Oklahoma_Hall_of_Fame)|url=https://oklahomahof.com/member-archives/g/gaylord-edward-l-1974}} ==Notes and references== {{Reflist}} {{Gaylord Hotels|state=autocollapse}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaylord, Edward}} Category:1919 births Category:2003 deaths Category:Asheville School alumni Category:Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni Category:Harvard Business School alumni Category:University of Oklahoma people Category:United States Army personnel of World War II Category:American billionaires Edward Category:Businesspeople from Oklahoma City Category:Deaths from cancer in Oklahoma Category:Ryman Hospitality Properties Category:20th-century American businesspeople Category:20th-century American philanthropists Category:Philanthropists from Oklahoma --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Edward Gaylord](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Gaylord) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Gaylord?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.