Orin Lehman


Orin Allan Lehman was an American public servant who served as New York State’s longest-serving commissioner of New York State Office of Parks and Recreation.

Early life

Lehman was born to a Jewish family in Manhattan on January 24, 1920, the son of Evelyn and Allan Lehman. He was the great-grandson of Mayer Lehman and great-nephew of Herbert H. Lehman, former New York governor and United States senator.
In 1942, he graduated with a B.A. from Princeton University. In 1956, he earned a M.A. in American history from New York University and in 1961, he earned a Ph.D. in American history from New York University.

Career

After college, he served as a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II and was seriously injured during the Battle of the Bulge; he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart. After the war, he helped to establish to start Just One Break, a charity dedicated to helping disabled people find employment. In 1947, Lehman worked as an associate for the family firm, Lehman Brothers.

Political career

In 1950, President Harry S. Truman appointed him to the advisory board of the Economic Cooperation Administration which administered aid to Europe under the Marshall Plan and then served as United States delegate to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
In 1965, he unsuccessfully ran for New York City comptroller in 1965 and in 1966, he unsuccessfully ran for Congress. In 1973, he was a member of the New York City Board of Corrections. In 1975, Governor Hugh L. Carey appointed him as commissioner of New York State Office of Parks and Recreation succeeding Robert Moses where he served until 1993.

Personal life

Lenman was married twice. His first marriage was on July 24, 1962 to Jane Bagley, a Carnegie-Mellon Institute graduate who was a granddaughter of R. J. Reynolds. They divorced and Jane remarried to yachtsman S. A. Long before her death in 1988. Before their divorce, they were the parents of one daughter:
In 1970, he married for the second time to Wendy Maria Vanderbilt, daughter of Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Jr. Before their divorce in 1995, they were the parents of two daughters:
He was in an eight year relationship with comedian Joan Rivers "until she caught him cheating, in 2001, and threw him out."
In 1970, he tried his hand at producing the off-Broadway play The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds by Paul Zindel, which won the Pulitzer Prize for best drama.
Lehman died on February 22, 2008 of pneumonia at his home in Manhattan. His partner at the time was actress Monique Van Vooren.