"His soul will feel it" Ex-wife's appearance overshadows "Mörtel's" funeral service
Richard Lugner has planned his funeral service himself: Lots of cameras buzz around his coffin in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. The event is overshadowed by an embarrassing interview with one of his ex-wives.
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- This Saturday morning, Richard "Mörtel" Lugner set off on his final journey.
- The Viennese building contractor died on August 12 in his villa in Vienna-Döbling at the age of 91.
- The busy Lugner had planned his funeral service himself during his lifetime.
- The funeral was overshadowed by a TV interview with his ex-wife Christine "Mausi" Lugner.
Hundreds of people bid farewell to Richard "Mörtel" Lugner today at a memorial service in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna.
The millionaire building contractor, known for his appearances with stars and starlets at the Vienna Opera Ball, died on August 12. As in life, he wanted a spectacular event, which is why there were dozens of cameras in the church broadcasting every detail live.
"We tried to prepare everything so that he would like it," said cathedral priest Toni Faber in an interview. "His soul will take notice, and he will look down with a smile and accept it gratefully."
Almost all of his ex-wives were present at the funeral service
His widow Simone, who was only married to him for 72 days, arrived in a floor-length black dress with a gold belt. She sat on one side of the coffin in the front row, while Lugner's daughter Jacqueline and her mother Christina ("Mausi") sat on the other side.
Richard Lugner had been married to Christina for 17 years (from 1990 to 2007). A marriage that apparently left a lasting impression on him.
According to the wishes of the deceased, the burial of the coffin was to take place at exactly 1.13 p.m. because 13 was his lucky number with Christina. The two had once said "I do" to each other at 13:13.
Building contractor Richard Lugner was the most famous guest at the Vienna Opera Ball, always wearing a top hat.
Image: dpa
The millionaire building contractor had prepared his memorial service and funeral himself.
Image: dpa
A memorial was set up in Lugner's shopping center after his death.
Image: dpa
Building contractor Richard Lugner was the most famous guest at the Vienna Opera Ball, always wearing a top hat.
Image: dpa
The millionaire building contractor had prepared his memorial service and funeral himself.
Image: dpa
A memorial was set up in Lugner's shopping center after his death.
Image: dpa
Almost all the other ex-wives and companions were present at the funeral service. Regional media unanimously report that Nina "Bambi" Bruckner, Karin "Zebra" Karre, "Goldfish" Andrea and Lydia "Wildsau" Kelovitz bid farewell to Lugner in St. Stephen's Cathedral.
Richard Lugner was married six times. Only Simone's predecessor, the former Playboy model Kathy, had complained in the media that she had not been invited.
The building contractor had chosen a red coffin. This is the color of his shopping center Lugner City.
On it lay the top hat that Lugner wore every year when he accompanied prominent women to the Vienna Opera Ball for a handsome fee, most recently the Elvis widow Priscilla Presley.
The coffin was to be driven past both the opera house and the shopping center in a procession before the funeral at noon.
Ex-wife shoots verbally against Lugner's widow
It was already clear in the run-up to today's funeral service that Lugner's widow and some of his ex-wives were not very close.
Richard Lugner's health had rapidly deteriorated shortly before his death. Despite being bedridden, his wife Simone is said to have appeared at a party in Kitzbühel a few days before the building contractor's death.
This did not go down well with Lugner's ex-wife Christina. In an interview with the TV channel RTL, she said: "He will always be in our hearts."
Afterwards, she didn't leave a good word for the widow. "I certainly wouldn't have left my husband at home alone when he was bedridden. That would certainly never have been an option for me."
Instead, she would have cooked her husband soups or other things that he liked. Lugner's ex-wife also finds it incomprehensible that the couple, who have only been married for a short time, did not sleep in the same bedroom:
"But as I said, everyone has to decide for themselves, make up their own mind and for what motives they choose a different bedroom. [...] We always slept together anyway."
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