Moya Olsen Lear

Moya Marie Olsen Lear was a philanthropist, businesswoman, and the wife of aviation pioneer William P. Lear.

Moya Marie Olsen was born on March 27, 1915 in Chicago, Illinois to John Sigvard “Ole” Olsen (1892-1963), a famous vaudevillian, and Lillian Louise (Clem) Olsen (1890-1990). She attended Ohio State University for a single year and then completed Pace Institute in New York for shorthand and typing. In her own words, Olsen worked as a “Girl Friday” (office assistant) for her father on his Broadway show, Hellzapoppin’. It was here, through her father's show, she met Bill Lear.

Moya and Bill's first meeting had been brief; Lear had come backstage at the 46th Street Theater one night, in September 1938, to offer his regards to Olsen for the evening's show and her father introduced the two. Moya wrote, "No angels sang. No bells chimed. No fireworks went off." It was just a quick greeting and they parted. However, on their second meeting on December 24th, 1938 Bill invited Moya out for a drink and their relationship took off. 

Olsen married Bill Lear in 1942, becoming his fourth wife. In spite of Bill's infidelities, Moya "loved Bill with an intense, unconditional love" and the couple had four children together (John, Shanda, David, and Tina) in addition to Lear’s children from previous marriages (Mary Louise, Bill, Jr., and Patti). Although Bill gave Moya a place as a board member for his various companies, she remained mostly only tangentially involved in his work during his lifetime, primarily acting as a welcoming, stable, and supportive presence to Lear and his partners, employees, and contacts. Various positions she held included serving on the Board of Directors for Lear Jet Corporation and as Vice-President. 

After Lear’s death, she was made Chairman of the Board of LearAvia Corporation, the parent company of Lear Fan, and attempted to take his final project, the Lear Fan, through completion and FAA certification, but was ultimately unsuccessful.

Moya was active in many philanthropic causes, particularly in the Reno, Nevada area where the Lears lived near the end of their lives, including serving on the boards of the Nevada Opera Association, the Nevada Festival Ballet and the Sierra Arts Foundation. She established the Bill and Moya Lear Foundation Scholarship Fund and used her Amelia Earhart Pioneering Achievement Award to fund scholarships for women majoring in aeronautical science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where she also established the Moya and Bill Lear Endowed Scholarship. 

Additional honors include her inductions into the halls of fame of such organizations as the Women in Aviation Pioneers, the United States Achievement Academy, Nevada Business Leaders and the Nevada Women’s Fund and six honorary doctorates: Doctor of Humane Letters from National University, San Diego and University of Nevada, Reno; Doctor of Laws from Northrop University, Los Angeles, Pepperdine University, Los Angeles, and Clemson University, South Carolina; and Doctor of Aviation Management from Embry-Riddle, Daytona Beach. She was also the first winner of the Katherine Wright Memorial Award in 1981. 

Moya Olsen Lear died on December 5, 2001 in Nevada.

Sources:

Lear, Moya. An Unforgettable Flight. Reno: Jack Bacon and Company, 1996. 

"Memorializing Aviation Pioneer and Philanthropist Moya Lear." Nevada Legislature. March 26, 2003. Accessed November 18, 2020. https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Session/72nd2003/Journal/Senate/Final/sj052.html.

"Philanthropist widow of Learjet developer dies at 86." Napa Valley Register. December 7, 2001. Accessed November 18, 2020. hhttps://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/obituaries/philanthropist-widow-of-learjet-developer-dies-at-86/article_7ec9325e-a668-51c1-b877-82d1289d7aeb.html.

Rashke, Richard. Stormy Genius: The Life of Aviation's Maverick, Bill Lear. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1985.