American Philanthropist & Businessperson Assassinated by Andrew Cunanan

Lee Miglin | Biography

Murdered in his home in 1997

• By Yunil Tamrakar
• Update : December 16, 2021

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Lee Albert Miglin was a philanthropist and businessperson assassinated by Andrew Cunanan, a serial killer.

Who was Lee Miglin?

Lee Albert Miglin was a businessperson and real estate developer born on 12 July 1925 in Westville, Illinois. 

A Westville high school graduate, Miglin won several statewide competitions as a student. Following graduation, he attended the Gallagher School of Business before enlisting in the United States Air Corps from 1943 to 1945. Miglin later earned a journalism degree from the University of Illinois.

Miglin started his professional career in the early 1960s. He joined a real estate company Arthur Rubloff & Co., in Chicago, where he rose to the vice president prior to being elected to the board of directors. He served at the firm for over 25 years.

In 1982, Miglin, with his partner, Paul Beitler, co-founded Miglin-Beitler Inc. They developed high-rise office buildings such as Oakbrook Terrace Tower, 181 and 200 W. Madison St., and the President's Plaza. 

Besides that, Miglin was the first real estate developer in Chicago to incorporate public sculpture into private developments. He also introduced the business park concept, which comprises office and warehouse space. 

In 1988, Miglin-Beitler Developments revealed designs for the Miglin-Beitler Skyneedle, a 1,999-foot and 125-story skyscraper in Chicago. However, the tower was never completed since plans fell through following a slump in Chicago's downtown office market in 1990. Miglin-Beitler had hoped to revive the project, but Miglin's murder ended those plans.

He died in May 1997 at 71 after being murdered in his home by a spree killer, Andrew Cunanan.

Furthermore, Miglin and his wife, Marilyn, were social and charitable activists in Chicago, raising funds for the Museum of Science and Industry and University of Chicago Hospitals.

Wife's Bio

Miglin married his wife, Marilyn Miglin, in 1959. The couple had been in a conjugal relationship for 38 years before he passed away. The couple has two children named Marlena (born 1968) and Duke (born 1971).

Marilyn Miglin is an entrepreneur, inventor, and Home Shopping Network host. She is one of the top 500 female business owners in the United States. In 1994, her firm, Marilyn Miglin L.P., recorded more than $25 million in sales, giving her the name "Queen of Makeovers." Moreover, according to her website, Pheromone, her signature fragrance, is one of the top ten luxury fragrances sold in the United States. Her business had a net worth of over $50 million as of 2018.

Besides that, she advocates for people with facial disfigurements and burns victims. Marilyn is also a founding member of the University of Illinois' craniofacial center advisory board. 

Death

On 4 May 1997, Miglin was murdered by a serial killer named Andrew Cunanan, whose case, The Assassination of Gianni Versace, was created into a television series. 

According to an article in Newsweek from May 1997, Miglin was found in his garage with stab wounds, and his throat slashed with a gardener's bow saw, his feet constrained, and his head covered in tape. 

Miglin was supposed to pick up his wife from Chicago O'Hare airport that morning. However, when he didn't arrive, she became skeptical of his whereabouts. In addition to that, Marilyn had discovered a 9 mm handgun in the bathroom and called the cops around 8 a.m. on that day.

Cunanan also murdered four other people, including David Madson, William Reese, Jeffrey Trail, and Gianni Versace. The same year, Cunanan committed suicide on a Miami houseboat. 

Gay

Miglin was portrayed as a gay man (portrayed by Mike Farrell) in the series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story. 

The characterization was based on Maureen Orth's book 'Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History,' which suggested that Miglin was a closeted bisexual male in a covert relationship with Cunanan. However, there is no further knowledge about him being gay.