Austria mourns Building tycoon Richard "Mörtel" Lugner is dead
On March 6, 2024, Lugner and his partner Simone "Biene" Reiländer attended the 70th birthday of artist Maria Lahr.
Image: IMAGO/K.Piles
Just last June, Richard Lugner married his partner Simone Reiländer at a lavish ceremony in Vienna. Naturally, he was accompanied by TV cameras. Lugner lived a life in the spotlight.
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
Richard Lugner even made his sixth wife his co-manager. (archive picture)
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
And here's the souvenir photo: Entrepreneur Richard Lugner and Simone Reiländer stand at their wedding ceremony in Vienna City Hall.
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
In 2024, Lugner invited Hollywood star Priscilla Presley to the 66th Opera Ball at the Vienna State Opera.
Image: sda
Priscilla Presley in Lugner's box.
Image: Roland Schlager/APA/dpa
2023 Acting icon and activist Jane Fonda appeared at the Opera Ball as Lugner's star guest.
Image: IMAGO/SEPA.Media
In 2014, Lugner was flanked by reality TV star Kim Kardashian at the Vienna Opera Ball.
Image: Imago
On March 6, 2024, Lugner and his partner Simone "Biene" Reiländer attended the 70th birthday of artist Maria Lahr.
Image: IMAGO/K.Piles
Just last June, Richard Lugner married his partner Simone Reiländer at a lavish ceremony in Vienna. Naturally, he was accompanied by TV cameras. Lugner lived a life in the spotlight.
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
Richard Lugner even made his sixth wife his co-manager. (archive picture)
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
And here's the souvenir photo: Entrepreneur Richard Lugner and Simone Reiländer stand at their wedding ceremony in Vienna City Hall.
Image: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa
In 2024, Lugner invited Hollywood star Priscilla Presley to the 66th Opera Ball at the Vienna State Opera.
Image: sda
Priscilla Presley in Lugner's box.
Image: Roland Schlager/APA/dpa
2023 Acting icon and activist Jane Fonda appeared at the Opera Ball as Lugner's star guest.
Image: IMAGO/SEPA.Media
In 2014, Lugner was flanked by reality TV star Kim Kardashian at the Vienna Opera Ball.
Image: Imago
The Austrian building tycoon Richard Lugner is dead. The uncrowned king of the Vienna Opera Ball was 91 years old.
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- Austrian entrepreneur and party animal Richard Lugner has died at the age of 91 in his villa in Döbling, reports the newspaper "Heute.at".
- Lugner was known for his media-effective appearances, particularly as the host of celebrity guests at the Vienna Opera Ball, and for his turbulent private life, which regularly made headlines.
- Despite his advanced age, he remained active, founded a successful construction company and made several public and election appearances, most recently marrying his sixth wife in June 2023.
As the newspaper "Heute.at" learned on Monday, the society builder Richard Lugner passed away in his villa in Döbling, Austria. The entrepreneur known as "Mörtel" was 91 years old.
The eccentric construction impresario led a life in the limelight. He loved the media and public attention, for example during the Vienna Opera Ball with a paid star guest at his side.
He also made headlines time and again with his private life. Just last June, Richard Lugner married his sixth wife Simone.
What's more, his wife Simone also supported Lugner in his Vienna shopping center. Lugner described the tasks of the former deputy branch manager of a DIY store as follows: "Collecting money and making Tiktok videos with me."
Lugner only got married again in June
Last June, the 91-year-old married his sixth wife Simone in front of numerous cameras at the registry office in Vienna. News portals reported on the live ticker and called it "the wedding of the year". According to Lugner himself, it was to be the last marriage of his life.
Every year since 1992, the Viennese building contractor has hired one or more stars to accompany him to the Opera Ball. These have included Sophia Loren, Pamela Anderson, Geri Halliwell, Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian.
He started with just four employees
Richard Siegfried Lugner, born in Vienna in 1932, was an Austrian entrepreneur who became known as a building contractor and later as a dazzling personality in the media.
After graduating from the Bundesgewerbeschule Wien Schellinggasse and receiving his master builder's license in 1962, Lugner laid the foundations for his future company. He started with just two workers and two employees, initially specializing in the renovation of old buildings and the construction of petrol stations. Over the years, he shifted his focus to office buildings and associated underground car parks. His most important projects include the construction of the Vienna Mosque and the renovation of the city temple of the Jewish community in Vienna.
In 1990, Lugner opened "Lugner City", which established itself as the seventh largest shopping center in Austria at the time. In the years that followed, he gradually handed over the management of the company to his sons. But while other people his age were enjoying retirement, Lugner remained active. He stood as a candidate in the 1998 federal presidential election and came fourth with 9.9 percent of the vote. A year later, he stood in the National Council elections, where he received 1.02 percent of the vote.
From the end of 2005, Lugner was the focus of the reality documentary "Die Lugners", which documented his everyday life and that of his then wife. After the separation, he looked for a new partner in another TV show, with whom he was eventually together for a year. In 2010, Lugner even ventured into the music industry and released his first single "I bin der Lugner (olé, olé)", which made it to number 29 in the Austrian charts.
