Richard Lugner built a mosque in Vienna, renovated apartments and constructed a shopping center. But he became famous for his star guests at the Opera Ball – and his younger women.
His stage was the Vienna Opera Ball. At the glittering party with its 5,000 guests, Richard “Mörtel” Lugner basked in the photographers’ flashlights. At his side was a famous woman, a beautiful woman or a very demanding companion, like the It Girl Kim Kardashian in 2014 with her many special requests. For large, discreetly undisclosed sums, prominent women accompanied him to the ball – most recently it was Elvis Presley’s widow, Priscilla.
Lugner also made headlines in June with his sixth marriage. He married Simone Reiländer, who was around 50 years younger than him. In July he had a heart operation, which he is said to have survived well. He has now died at the age of 91.
The entrepreneur was sometimes a shockingly embarrassing, sometimes an almost touchingly boyish self-promoter. Nothing seemed too unpleasant for him, especially when the TV cameras were rolling. In the reality soap “Die Lugners”, “Mörtel” revealed his private life in around 100 episodes on private television (ATV) from 2003 onwards.
Screaming duels at the Opera Ball or reconciliation pictures from the bathtub – all real and calculated emotions were played out in front of the TV cameras. “My passion is hotter than goulash juice,” he quoted from an operetta hit in front of the cameras.
Married six times
His heart was especially devoted to young women. This was particularly evident in 2014, when he married the German model Cathy in Schönbrunn Palace. She was 57 years younger than him.
When the divorce followed two years later, it made Lugner, who says he received a lot of offers from women aged 25 to 30, think again. His target group was now women around 40. “That’s the deepest thing,” he said.
It is possible that a prostate cancer diagnosis in 2016 also caused him to ponder. He survived the illness and appeared remarkably vital at many performances. He did a lot to achieve this: he had injections, and underwent cold and nutritional treatments.
Lugner’s petting zoo
All of his girlfriends were given animal names, for example “Mausi”, “Hasi”, “Käfer”, “Bambi”, “Kolibri”. He did not see the fact that reporters asked him: “How is Lugner’s petting zoo?” as an affront to him or his respective partner.
Instead, Lugner collected every line about him, including the malicious comments. “I like seeing myself in the newspaper,” he admitted. Folders with reports about Lugner were stacked up in his office.
Speaking of office: Lugner’s life was not just about fun and going out almost every evening – he was also working in the office of his shopping center until the end. The “Lugner City” in Vienna, with its more than 110 shops and 56,000 rentable square meters, is the engineer’s life’s work.
Career as a construction entrepreneur, forays into politics
Lugner first hit the headlines in 1975 when the entrepreneur was commissioned to build a mosque in Vienna. At one point, his construction company employed more than 600 people. In 1990, he opened his shopping center, later adding a cinema with eleven screens. In the “Lugner City,” the star guests of the Opera Ball gave autograph sessions and press conferences – a huge media response for the temple of consumption was guaranteed.
The life of this socialite also includes forays into politics. In 1998, he ran for the office of Austrian Federal President. The architect received 9.9 percent of the vote, which was considered a respectable result.
This was not to happen again, as his later TV appearances made him more of a laughed-at-loud clown in Austrian society. In his second presidential candidacy in 2016, he only received 2.3 percent of the vote. “I am Kasperl and Kasperl always wins,” was his unsuccessful motto.
The annual Opera Ball appearances were not as untroubled as they appeared on the surface. On the one hand, Lugner often had some stress with the airs and graces of his guests, and on the other, the society, which considered itself to be really noble, was not happy about the rather shrill guest. “They don’t like Lugner there, but the Opera Ball benefits from me,” Lugner once said.
Positive life balance – with one exception
Looking back on his life as the head of a construction company, as the owner of a shopping center and as an often ridiculed oddball for whom nothing is too embarrassing for a headline, Lugner said a few years ago: “Everything went well for me – except for the thing with women.”
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
