Edward Bennett Williams | |
|---|---|
 Williams in 1970 | |
| Born | (1920-05-31)May 31, 1920 Hartford, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Died | August 13, 1988(1988-08-13) (aged 68) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Education | |
| Occupations |
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| Employer | Hogan & Hartson (1945–1949) |
| Organizations | |
| Title |
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| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Agnes Neill Williams |
| Children | 7 |
| Treasurer of theDemocratic National Committee | |
| In office October 18, 1974 – January 21, 1977 | |
| Preceded by | Charles Peter McColough |
| Succeeded by | Joel McCleary |
Edward Bennett Williams (May 31, 1920 – August 13, 1988) was an American lawyer, businessman, and sports team owner. He received his undergraduate degree from theCollege of the Holy Cross before studying law atGeorgetown University. He worked forHogan & Hartson in Washington, D.C., beginning in the 1940s and later co-founded thelaw firm ofWilliams & Connolly in 1967. Williams worked as thetreasurer of theDemocratic National Committee in the mid-1970s.
Williams also worked in professional sports, serving as the controlling owner of theWashington Redskins of theNational Football League (NFL) from 1965 to 1979 and as its president from 1966 to 1984. He later owned theBaltimore Orioles ofMajor League Baseball (MLB) from 1979 until his death in 1988.
Williams received a degree from theCollege of the Holy Cross in 1941 before serving in theUnited States Army Air Forces (USAAF) duringWorld War II.[1]
Williams represented many high-profile clients, includingSam Giancana,John Hinckley Jr.,Frank Sinatra, formerGovernor of Texas andSecretary of the TreasuryJohn B. Connally Jr., financierRobert Vesco,Playboy publisherHugh Hefner,Jimmy Hoffa, organized crime figureFrank Costello, oil commodity traderMarc Rich, U.S. SenatorJoseph McCarthy, corporate raiderVictor Posner,Michael Milken,The Washington Post newspaper, the ReverendSun Myung Moon, former CIA directorRichard Helms,Bobby Baker,The Washington Post, various FBI agents accused of bag jobs[clarification needed] in New York, andAldo Icardi, anOSS agent accused of killing his commander. He also defendedJack Ruby, the assassin ofLee Harvey Oswald.
In April 1968 he appeared in aCBS news special,The Trial Lawyer, alongside his fellow lawyersMelvin Belli,F. Lee Bailey, andPercy Foreman, where they discussed the merits and demerits oftrial by jury.[2]
Williams was a graduate of theCollege of the Holy Cross andGeorgetown University Law Center. Before establishingWilliams & Connolly in 1967 with Paul Connolly, he worked at the prominent D.C.-based law firm ofHogan & Hartson from 1945 to 1949. Williams also served astreasurer of theDemocratic National Committee from October 18, 1974, to January 21, 1977.[3][4]
Williams acquired a five percent share in theWashington Redskins in 1962. In 1965, he was appointed by team ownerGeorge Preston Marshall to run daily operations and was named team president the following year.[1] Williams acquired Marshall's shares in the franchise following his death in 1969.[5] As owner, Williams spent heavily on appointing high-profile coaches and general managers, beginning withOtto Graham in1966 and continuing withVince Lombardi in1969,George Allen in1971, andBobby Beathard in1978. In 1974, Williams sold majority interest in the team to Redskins minority partnerJack Kent Cooke.[5] Due to NFL rules at the time disallowing controlling ownership in other leagues, Cooke allowed Williams to continue operating the team until selling his other properties, the NBA'sLos Angeles Lakers and the NHL'sLos Angeles Kings, toJerry Buss in May 1979.[5] Williams remained with the Redskins as its president until selling his remaining shares to Cooke in 1985.[5]
Williams purchased controlling interest in theBaltimore Orioles ofMajor League Baseball (MLB) fromJerold Hoffberger for $12 million on August 2, 1979,[6] with the transaction being approved unanimously byAmerican League team owners11+1⁄2 weeks later on October 22.[7] His interest in purchasing the franchise began when he represented in negotiationsWilliam E. Simon, who had attempted to do the same thing earlier that year until he withdrew his offer on February 5.[8][9] As part of the deal, Williams bought a block of publicly traded shares that had been issued in 1936 when the team was still the St. Louis Browns, making the Orioles privately held once again.
Many feared Williams would move the team to Washington. Baltimore had previously lost theBaltimore Bullets to Washington. The fear of Williams's moving the team increased with the 1984 departure of theBaltimore Colts. However, Williams never moved the team. More importantly, Williams signed a new, long-term lease with Baltimore that would pay for a new stadium, which would becomeOriole Park at Camden Yards. He would not live to see the new ballpark (it opened in 1992, four years after his death). The Orioles were sold by Williams's wife Agnes toEli Jacobs,Larry Lucchino andSargent andBobby Shriver for $70 million on December 5, 1988.[10]
Among Williams's many real estate holdings wasThe Jefferson, a 98-room luxury hotel located near theWhite House and favored by many sport and political figures in the 1980 and 90s. In April 1989, Paine Webber Realty (a subsidiary of the Paine Webber stock brokerage firm) purchased the hotel from Agnes Williams for $28 million ($71 million in 2024 dollars).
Williams died atGeorgetown University Hospital on August 13, 1988, after a 12-year battle withcolon cancer.[11] He was buried in St. Gabriel Cemetery inPotomac, Maryland. His funeral was attended by most of Washington's power elite, including then U.S. vice presidentGeorge H. W. Bush, Supreme Court JusticeThurgood Marshall, baseball legendJoe DiMaggio, boxing championSugar Ray Leonard, NFL commissionerPete Rozelle,Eunice Kennedy andSargent Shriver, andMichael Milken (of the famous 1980s junk-bond scandal).[12] TheEdward Bennett Williams Law Library atGeorgetown University Law Center is named in his honor. The senior apartments residence hall at theCollege of the Holy Cross is also named in his honor.
