DALLAS (AP) — Dallas billionaire and heavyweight GOPpolitical donor Harold Simmons, who has
given tens of millions ofdollars to Republican candidates, including Texas Gov. Rick Perry andformer
presidential candidate Mitt Romney, has died. He was 82.Simmons,born to two school teachers in East
Texas, became one of the richestmen in the country with interests ranging from energy to
chemicals.Simmons’ spokesman Chuck McDonald said Simmons died Saturday in Dallas.McDonald said he did
not know the cause of death.Perry on Sundaycalled Simmons "a true Texas giant, rising from humble
beginnings andseizing the limitless opportunity for success we so deeply cherish inour great
state.""His legacy of hard work and giving … will live for generations," Perry said in
a statement.Simmons’wife, Annette Simmons, told The Dallas Morning News her husband died atBaylor
University Medical Center at Dallas. She said he’d been inBaylor’s intensive care unit for the last
eight days, the newspaperreported. She did not give the cause of death.Attorney GeneralGreg Abbott noted
in a statement that Simmons "shared his success withthe state he dearly loved, giving generously to
make advancements inhealthcare and to improve higher education."Simmons’ has giventens of millions
to Texas organizations, including charities, medicalgroups, education groups and civic organizations.
Daniel K. Podolsky,president of UT Southwestern Medical Center, said his donations to theirinstitution
alone approached $200 million.He currently sits atNo. 40 on Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest Americans
with a net worthof $10 billion as of the fall, according to Forbes."HaroldSimmons was one of my
best friends, and it’s never easy to say goodbyeto close friends," Texas oil tycoon T. Boone
Pickens said in astatement. "Harold accomplished so much in his life. He was a passionateperson —
passionate about his family, his business, philanthropy andpolitics. … We should all leave such a rich
legacy behind."Accordingto a biography on his namesake foundation’s website, Simmons earned
hisbachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Texas.Hedecided at the age of 29 to buy a
small Dallas drugstore, according tohis biography. He went on to buy Williams Drug Co. in 1966 and 30
moredrug stores the next year, followed by an $18 million buyout of Ward’sDrugstores in 1969. He sold
his stores in 1973 for $50 million in Eckerdstock. He then started a career as an investor, buying major
positionsin publicly traded companies.In 2008, Simmons bankrolled adslinking then-presidential candidate
Barack Obama to William Ayers, aVietnam-era militant who helped found the violent Weather
Underground.Simmons was also a key backer of the Swift Boat Veterans’ attacks onDemocratic presidential
candidate John Kerry in 2004.Simmons also called Obama "the most dangerous American alive" in
an interview with the Wall Street Journal last year.Accordingto The Dallas Morning News, his foundation
has also recently donated$600,000 to Resource Center, a group that serves the city’s lesbian,gay,
bisexual and transgender community.Other donations have included $5 million to the campaign to build the
AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rightsreserved.
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