Apr. 2--Robert E. Langford was a visionary who built Central Florida's first air-conditioned hotel in the 1950s and foresaw the area's rise as a tourism powerhouse. He was also known as a storyteller, avid sportsman and family man. 

Langford died Saturday from heart failure. He was 88. 

Langford was literally born into the hospitality business. His family owned two hotels in Chicago, where some of the best-known figures of the day visited, including Hollywood film star Douglas Fairbanks and gangster Al Capone's brother. 

On a visit to Florida, Langford fell in love with Winter Park and decided to build a resort that would be open year-round, an idea some called crazy in the early 1950s when few visitors could take the sweltering Florida summers. 

After Langford opened the hotel that bore his name in 1956, at New England and Interlachen Avenues, it became a popular destination for the rich and famous. 

Ronald and Nancy Reagan spent their 25th wedding anniversary there. John Dean was a guest at the height of the Watergate scandal. Other guests included Mamie Eisenhower, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and comedian Henny Youngman. 

Langford's children said their father's favorite guest was Eleanor Roosevelt. 

"He liked her because she was outspoken," said Robert L. Langford II, who helped run the hotel for several decades with his sister Gerry Liff of Longwood. 

In 1961, Langford and his first wife, Beatrice, moved their family to Winter Park. 

Liff said her father's favorite song was "My Way," as sung by Frank Sinatra. It seemed fitting, she said, considering her father's contributions. 

Langford donated Wekiva Springs and surrounding land to the state for a park. He also donated land for the Winter Park Library. 

In the mid-1960s, he joined with about 90 other business leaders to pay for and donate the land that is now the campus of the University of Central Florida. 

Charles Millican, the school's first president, said he visited Langford last week. 

"He was in excellent spirits," Millican said. "We talked about a party he gave before the university opened for the handful of faculty and staff around the hotel pool. He was so gracious to us." 

Langford also served as chairman of the March of Dimes. In February, the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce named him "Outstanding Citizen of the Year." 

Tan and muscular, Langford played tennis every other day at noon until three years ago, his son said. Many people also remember the hotel owner taking time out of his day, dressed in coat and tie, to flyfish in nearby lakes. 

Last summer, the hotel closed its doors. Family members are in negotiations with new owners who plan to polish the vintage gem into a five-star hotel and condominiums. 

"Selling the hotel saddened him a great deal," Liff said of her father. "But he had a great life. He loved cigars, he loved telling stories and he loved to laugh." 

Langford also is survived by his wife, Kathleen, of Winter Park; daughters Dr. Carol Langford of Duxbury, Mass.; Bonnie Reese of Seattle, Wash., and six grandchildren. Carey Hand Cox-Parker Funeral Home of Winter Park is handling funeral arrangements. 

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(c) 2001. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.