Walter O'Malley

Walter O'Malley was the only child of Edwin Joseph O'Malley (1881–1953), who worked as a cotton goods salesman in the Bronx in 1903.

Edwin O'Malley later became the Commissioner of Public Markets for New York City.

Walter's mother was Alma Feltner (1882–1940).

Walter was a third-generation Irish-American.

His grandfather was born in County Mayo, Ireland.

O'Malley grew up as a Bronx-born New York Giants fan.

He frequently attended Giants games at the Polo Grounds with his uncle Clarence.

O'Malley was a Boy Scout who rose to the rank of Star Scout.

Subsequently, Walter started the Walter F. O'Malley Engineering Company and published the Subcontractors Register with his uncle, Joseph O'Malley (1893–1985).

Walter eventually concentrated on the field of law, starting with work on wills and deeds.

Walter Francis O'Malley (October 9, 1903 – August 9, 1979) was an American sports executive who owned the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers team in Major League Baseball from 1950 to 1979.

O'Malley attended Jamaica High School in Queens from 1918 to 1920 and then the Culver Academy (the eventual high school alma mater of future New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner) in Indiana.

He managed both the baseball and tennis teams, served on the executive staff of the student newspaper, was a member of the Hospital Visitation Committee as well as the debate team, Bible Discipline Committee and the YMCA.

At Culver, his baseball career was ended with a baseball that hit him on the nose.

Later, he attended the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) and graduated in 1926 as the senior class Salutatorian.

At Penn, he was initiated into Theta Delta Chi, and he also served as president of the Phi Deuteron Charge.

Upon his graduation from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science his father gave him a cabin cruiser that slept eight.

He was also Junior and Senior class president.

O'Malley originally enrolled at Columbia University in New York City for law school, but after his family lost their money in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, he switched from Columbia Law School to night school at Fordham University.

Edwin O'Malley's dry goods business was failing and Walter had to help run the business.

After he completed his law degree in 1930 at Fordham Law, he worked as an assistant engineer for the New York City Subway.

After earning his law degree he needed to obtain a clerkship, but it was during the depression and no one could afford to hire him.

He allowed a struggling lawyer to use space in his office and paid for his own clerkship.

After working for the Subway, he worked for Thomas F. Riley, who owned the Riley Drilling Company, and they formed the partnership of Riley and O'Malley.

With the help of Edwin O'Malley's political connections, Walter's company received contracts from the New York Telephone Company and the New York City Board of Education to perform geological surveys.

By 1933, he was senior partner in a 20-man Midtown Manhattan law firm.

He developed the business habits of smoking cigars and of answering questions only after taking two puffs.

During the Great Depression, O'Malley represented bankrupt companies and enriched himself, while building his thriving law practice.

He invested wisely in firms such as the Long Island Rail Road, Brooklyn Borough Gas Company, the New York Subways Advertising Company, a building materials firm, a beer firm and some hotels.

In 1958, as owner of the Dodgers, he brought major league baseball to the West Coast, moving the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles despite the Dodgers being the second most profitable team in baseball from 1946 to 1956, and coordinating the move of the New York Giants to San Francisco at a time when there were no teams west of Kansas City, Missouri.

In 1970, O'Malley ceded the team presidency to his son, Peter.

During the 1975 season, the Dodgers' inability to negotiate a contract with Andy Messersmith led to the Seitz decision, which limited the baseball reserve clause and paved the way for modern free agency.

He would become the first chairman of the Dodgers, a title established for him, and remain so until his death in 1979.

He bequeathed the team to his children Peter O'Malley and Therese O'Malley Seidler upon his death in 1979.

In 2008, O'Malley was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for his contributions to and influence on the game of baseball.

O'Malley's father, Edwin Joseph O'Malley, was politically connected.

Walter, a University of Pennsylvania salutatorian, went on to obtain a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.), and he used the combination of his family connections, his personal contacts, and both his educational and vocational skills to rise to prominence.

First, he became an entrepreneur involved in public works contracting, and then he became an executive with the Dodgers.

He progressed from being a team lawyer to being both the Dodgers' owner and president, and he eventually made the business decision to relocate the Dodgers franchise.

Although he moved the franchise, O'Malley is known as a businessman whose major philosophy was stability through loyalty to and from his employees.