enter the 1969 Indianapolis 500, the Lear Vapordyne. The car never entered the race and never ran at competitive speeds. Personal life Marriages and children With his first wife, Ethel Peterson Lear, daughter Mary Louise was born in January 1925. He married his second wife, Madeline Murphy, in October 1926. Their son, William Lear Jr., was born on May 24, 1928. Daughter Patti was born on June 26, 1929. Lear's third marriage, in February 1936, to Margaret Jane Radell, was childless. In 1941, Lear married his fourth wife, Moya Marie Olsen. They had four children together: John Lear, Shanda, David and Tina. Lear had a reputation for being difficult. The 75-year-old Lear died of leukemia in Reno, Nevada on May 14, 1978. His remains were cremated and scattered at sea. Tributes and honors In 1944, Harry Bruno included William P. Lear in a list of 87 "all-time greats in American aviation ... [who] gambled their necks, their brains and their money – that aviation might grow." 1949, Collier Trophy for F-5 autopilot 1954, member Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans 1967, appeared as himself in the film In Like Flint 1972, Elliott Cresson Medal 1972, Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement 1974, Tony Jannus Award for his distinguished contributions to aviation. 1978, National Aviation Hall of Fame 1981, International Air & Space Hall of Fame 1993, National Inventors Hall of Fame 2003, Hannibal Municipal Airport was renamed the Hannibal Regional Airport, William P. Lear Field in his honor. 2020, The National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the Museum of Flight a $236,000 grant to process and digitize the collected papers of William P. Lear and Moya Olsen Lear over a 2-year period. Notes References Logie, Stuart. Winging it: The Making of Canadair's Challenger. Toronto, Ontario: Macmillan Canada. 1992. . Rashke, Richard. Stormy Genius: The Life of Aviation's Maverick, Bill Lear. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1985. . Stim, Richard and David Pressman. "Patent Pending in 24 Hours." Berkeley, California: Nolo, 2007. . External links The William P. and Moya Olsen Lear Papers at The Museum of Flight (Seattle, Wash.). William Powell Lear, Sr. at the National Aviation Hall of Fame William P. Lear, 1954 Horatio Alger Award from Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans. W P Lear Sr. at IMDB. 1902 births 1978 deaths Burials at sea American aerospace engineers American aviation businesspeople Bombardier Inc. People from Hannibal,