"If Bill would have been a politician, he could have run for anything because there were absolutely
no scandals in his past. He was just a great person and a wonderful family man. He was always
upbeat and took the high road in whatever he did. He was respected literally throughout the world."
- Karen Davidson
Bill Carroll
Special to the Jewish News
W
illiam Davidson was a
shrewd international busi-
nessman, avid sportsman
and mega-philanthropist. He also was a
quiet billionaire who preferred to stay out
of the limelight.
He was one of the nation's richest men;
his wealth was estimated at about $2.1
billion by Forbes magazine in the latest
worldwide rankings. He donated about
$200 million in his lifetime to worldwide
institutions and causes, much of it to
Jewish organizations and charities.
But he still found time to practice for
and recite the maftir Torah portion each
Yom Kippur morning at Congregation
Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, where he was
a member for decades and a past presi-
dent.
Davidson, 86, died of complications
from pneumonia at his home on Lahser
Road in Bloomfield Hills on March 13,
2009. "Although he was in ill health, his
death still was unexpected," said his son-
in-law, Jonathan Aaron of Bloomfield Hills.
"He held a meeting at his home earlier in
the week and talked to business associates
the morning of the day he died."
The first public indication of his ill
health was when he did not appear on
the bimah during Yom Kippur services at
Shaarey Zedek in 2007 and again last year.
Another indication was when he stopped
attending Detroit Pistons basketball home
games earlier this season. Davidson was
majority owner of the team he purchased
in 1974 for $6 million. He used to sit
— most recently in a wheelchair — below
the basket near the Pistons bench, prefer-
ring to sit with the fans than in his suite.
"Saying maftir at Yom Kippur services
was very dear to him," said his wife, Karen.
They had been married for 10 years after
meeting on a blind date. "And, of course,
he loved going to the games. But he just
didn't have the energy to do those things
any more. It was easier for him to sit home
and watch the game on our large-screen
television set. When I would go to the
games, he would tell me, 'Bring home a
winner!'"
Karen Davidson described her husband
as "a man of high integrity, very honest,
unpretentious and down to earth, who
was always upbeat and took the high road
in whatever he did. He was respected lit-
erally throughout the world. If he would
have been a politician, he could have run
for anything because there were absolutely
no scandals in his past. He was just a great
person and a wonderful family man."
The former Karen Weidman, 59, will
succeed Davidson as Pistons owner. She
often accompanied him to games. His son,
Ethan, 39, will retain his non-paying job
with the team. "We will always keep it in
the family," Davidson once stated.
"Family ownership always has been in
the succession plan," said Aaron, who has
been Davidson's assistant at Guardian. "He
laid out a succession plan 20 years ago."
Guardian will make an announcement
soon on his successor as chairman and
president, Aaron said. Mr. Davidson's
nephew, Ralph Gerson of Bloomfield Hills,
is the current executive vice president.
Karen Davidson reminisced about her
husband's worldwide recognition. "One
time, we were in a small restaurant in
southern France when a young boy from
Philadelphia recognized him and asked
for his autograph. He said: 'You're Bill
Davidson, the Pistons owner, aren't you?'
Another time, a former NBA player rec-
ognized him in an out-of-the-way ham-
burger place in Manhattan. It was amazing
how people everywhere seemed to know
who he was."
She said David Stern, the Jewish com-
missioner of the National Basketball
Association, called her shortly after her
husband died, asking if there was any-
thing he could do. The Pistons will wear a
black stripe over the left shoulder of their
uniforms for the rest of the season.
Davidson bought his team a private
plane, Roundball One, several years ago
— the first for a pro basketball team —
and built them a state-of-the-art practice
facility that he used himself for workouts.
He built the Palace of Auburn Hills with
1938 Guardian Glass facility on Lafayette Boulevard in Detroit
$90 million of his own money. Six months
ago, he was inducted into the Basketball
Hall of Fame.
He also owned Palace Sports &
Entertainment, including the DTE Energy
Music Theatre (formerly Pine Knob) in
Independence Township and the Meadow
Brook Music Theatre in Rochester Hills;
the Detroit Shock of the Women's National
Basketball Association. He formerly
owned the Tampa Bay Lightning of the
National Hockey League. In fact, he
became the first owner to win champion-
ships in three pro sports, with the Pistons,
Shock and Lightning in 2003-2004. The
Pistons also won NBA titles under him in
1989 and 1990.
Davidson's minority partners in the
Palace enterprise were business entre-
preneurs David Hermelin and Robert
Sosnick, both of whom predeceased him.
"Bill was just a wonderful guy," said
Doreen Hermelin of Bingham Farms.
"David and Bill traveled together, played
tennis together and had a great time. We
were neighbors in Aspen, Colo., and the
two of them would have fierce gin rummy
games on Bill's plane. David joked with Bill
that he made the pilot circle for a landing
longer if he was beating David in gin."
'Let's Do The Job'
Bill Davidson was a man of few words
who rarely granted interviews; but, like
the average fan, he shunned neckties and
expressed his disdain for NBA referees.
"I just don't want to be a public figure
he said in an interview a few years ago. "I
don't see any point in it."
He added that he didn't want plaques
or ribbons or articles written about him.
"Let's just do the job',' he would tell busi-
ness associates. Still, accolades kept com-
ing. He was, for example, an inaugural
inductee into the Michigan Jewish Sports
Hall of Fame.
"I have a heavy heart; Bill was not only a
congregant, but one of my dearest friends:'
said Rabbi Emeritus Irwin Groner of
Shaarey Zedek, who often said he used to
pray for the Pistons in important games.
Groner is in ill health in Florida and could
not attend the funeral.
The sports world, where Davidson was
affectionately known as "Mr. D" by col-
leagues and fans, was just one aspect of
his life. He was chairman and president of
Down-To-Earth on page A16
March 19
2009
A15