Eugene Victor Klein (January 29, 1921 – March 12, 1990) was an American businessman who was chairman of the board of directors and chief stockholder of National General Corporation, an insurance and entertainment company based in Los Angeles, California.
[1] Born to a Jewish family[2] in The Bronx, New York, Klein made his money and reputation in California where he owned a very successful used-car dealership.
A long-time Democratic Party supporter, Klein helped finance Pierre Salinger in his 1964 election campaign for the United States Senate.
On August 25 they led a group of investors who purchased the San Diego Chargers for $10 million, at the time, a record price for a National Football League franchise.
During his time with the Chargers football club, Klein became involved in a much publicized feud with Al Davis, the then managing general partner of the Oakland Raiders.
Their differences resulted in a lawsuit in which a San Diego Superior Court jury held Davis responsible for a heart attack Klein suffered in 1981.
During this time the Chargers offense had three future Hall of Fame inductees with Dan Fouts as quarterback, Kellen Winslow at tight end, and Charlie Joiner at wide receiver.
[3] While Jefferson was replaced by Chandler, future Hall of Famer Dean's departure on defense coincided with the Chargers surrendering the most passing yards in the NFL in both 1981[4] and 1982.
Forbes.com ranked its 92067 as the second most expensive ZIP code real estate market in the United States for 2005 In poor health, in 1989 Klein retired from racing, selling off his 146 horses just a few months before he died.