George Leon Argyros (born 1937 in Detroit, Michigan) is the former United States Ambassador to Spain. He is also a successful real estate investor, and was the owner of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners from 1980 to 1989.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Business 3 Politics 4 Baseball 5 See also 6 References

[edit] Early 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. He is a member of the board of trustees of California Institute of Technology, and The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC.

He and his wife of 40 years, Julia, have three grown children and six grandchildren.^[1]

[edit] 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 apartments. 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 recently has done business through the real estate company Arnel & Affiliates (DBA "Arnel Property Management Company"), which manages apartments and invests in commercial property. Arnel & Affiliates does business primarily in southern California. Through his business practices Argyros has achieved a net worth around $1 billion.^[2]

In 2001 Arnel and Argyros were named in a civil complaint alleging Arnel Management "systematically withheld tenants' security deposits".^[3] Soon after its filing, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas terminated the district attorney's investigation and removed Argyros' name from the case, saying "I felt we had a strong case against the company and it would weaken the case [to include Argyros]." This decision was attacked after it was discovered that Argyros had contributed $30,000 to Rackauckas's campaign. Argyros was confirmed as ambassador to Spain shortly after this case settled.^[4]

[edit] 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.^[1]

In 2001 Argyros was appointed Ambassador to Spain and Andorra. He was sworn in on November 21, 2001.^[1] Many viewed the appointment as a political reward for his fundraising efforts for the Republican Party.^[4]

As U.S. Ambassador to Spain, Argyros spent about half his time in Orange County and the other half in Madrid. He is one of very few American ambassadors to have spent such a substantial time outside the host country while serving as Chief of Mission or Ambassador.

[edit] Baseball

In 1980, Argyros bought an 80 percent interest in the Seattle Mariners. During most of his tenure, he ran the team on a shoestring budget, with a payroll among the lowest in baseball. Despite his considerable wealth, he refused to spend money on players or a farm system. He made noises about moving the team elsewhere, and used that threat to get a more favorable lease at the Kingdome. Argyros sold the team to Jeff Smulyan in 1989.^[5]

[edit] See also

• List of billionaires

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Former Ambassador George L. Argyros". madrid.usembassy.gov. http://madrid.usembassy.gov/emba/ambargyrosen.html. Retrieved 2007-09-28. 
2. ^ "George Argyros". Forbes.com. http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2004/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYear=2004&passListType=Person&uniqueId=XWVJ&datatype=Person. Retrieved 2007-09-28. 
3. ^ Parsons, Dana (July 29, 2001). "Did D.A. Give Argyros a Break in Tenant Case?". L.A. Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2001/jul/29/local/me-27925. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Granelli, James S.; Scott Martelle (October 8, 2001). "The Region; Argyros Moves Closer to OK for Spain Post; Inquiry: Senate hearing on developer's appointment as ambassador is expected soon now that a state probe into his apartment firm has been settled". L.A. Times. 
5. ^ Zumsteg, Derek. Baseball in Seattle. Baseball Prospectus, 2002-03-28.

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Edward L. Romero	U.S. Ambassador to Spain 2001–2004 Also accredited to Andorra.	Succeeded by Eduardo Aguirre

v • d • e Principal owners of the Seattle Mariners franchise Danny Kaye • George Argyros • Jeff Smulyan • Hiroshi Yamauchi • Nintendo of America