Barron Hilton founded the L.A. Chargers, though the team soon left for San Diego
Barron Hilton loved playing poker, flying — in both conventional aircraft and sailplanes — and owning an upstart pro football team in an upstart league, but when it came to seeking his fortune, he chose the family business, the Hilton Hotel Corp.
William Barron Hilton — Barron was his mother’s maiden name — was born Oct. 23, 1927, in Dallas, where he grew up as a devoted fan of the planes that flew into and out of Love Field, the city airport. He had his flying license by the time he was 17 and was serving as a Navy photographer during World War II. And he wasn’t particularly fond of the hotel business.
That venture didn’t go so well, losing $2 million in six years, so Hilton sold the brand to Citibank and, using his own money, moved on to one that turned out quite well indeed, the Los Angeles Chargers. “It was after the trumpet call, followed by the roar of ‘Charge!’” Hilton told Bill Dwyre of The Times in 2009. “It never had a thing to do with the credit card.”
The company had already, at Barron’s urging, spun off the international operation — it was repurchased years later — and he had other changes in mind.Biggest among them was Hilton’s move into gaming with the purchase of two Las Vegas casinos, the Flamingo and the International. Within months, gambling revenue was accounting for about 40% of company profits, with more hotel/casinos on the horizon.
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