Longtime lawmaker Jack Regan dies at 64

Cy Ryan and Ed Koch

Friday, Jan. 22, 1999 | 11:31 a.m.

Jack Regan, a Las Vegas bar owner who during 10 years in the Nevada Legislature championed the causes of business, education, veterans, the mentally ill and others, has died. He was 64.

Regan, who underwent surgery to remove a lung during his unsuccessful state Senate re-election bid last year, died Thursday night at his North Las Vegas home following a lengthy bout with lung cancer.

A memorial reception is planned for Jan. 30 from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Masonic Memorial Temple, 2200 W. Mesquite Ave., near Rancho Drive and U.S. 95. The formal Masonic services will be at 2 p.m. that day.

Regan, a Democrat, served in the Legislature since 1989, including two terms in the Assembly. He also was an administrator at the Community College of Southern Nevada and owned Jack's Place bar.

"I knew Jack Regan for many years and will miss him both as a friend and as a legislator," Republican Gov. Kenny Guinn said today. "He served our state with dignity and integrity. This is a very sad day for me but I know Jack will be remembered as a fine senator and an even better person."

Assemblywoman Vonne Chowning, D-North Las Vegas, called him a "great friend. When anybody needed help he was there."

Chowning said he and she worked on many projects and Regan "wanted to get them done for the best interests of the state."

She said Regan looked at his defeat in the 1998 election "as a blessing in disguise because he could take care of himself and his wife, Rosemary."

It was Regan's dedication to business interests that helped lead to that loss in the September primary. Political newcomer Maggie Carlton, a waitress at Treasure Island, beat him with strong Culinary Union backing.

Assemblyman John Marvel, R-Battle Mountain, called Regan a "good man. I hate to see him go. He will be sorely missed."

Senate Majority leader William Raggio, R-Reno, called Regan, "a valued member of the legislature who was extremely dedicated and very knowledgeable."

Raggio said Regan was "a strong ally for reform of education and raising of state standards. He was concerned about veterans issues and was a moving force to establish the veterans home in Southern Nevada."

Regan was named Legislator of the Year in 1996 by the American Legislative Exchange.

Born Feb. 2, 1934, in Chicago, Regan earned a bachelor's degree from Southern Illinois University and did graduate work in urban planning.

He served in the U.S. Navy aboard a submarine.

Regan was elected to Assembly District 20 in 1988, defeated in 1990 but then won election to Assembly District 19 in 1992. He was elected to the Senate in 1994.

A conservative, Regan often was at odds with his party leadership. He served on the committees of finance, taxation and natural resources in the past session.

Regan also supported negotiating with the federal government for a big payout if the nuclear dump ever is located at Yucca Mountain.

Regan was on a legislative trip to Germany last summer when he started coughing up blood.

"He took out his cigarettes and his lighter and threw them away," said his wife, Rosemary Seger Regan.

He returned home and his left lung was removed in July. But the cancer spread.

Regan was a founder and board member of Habitat for Humanity in Las Vegas; founder and past president of the Jaycees Senior Citizens Mobile Home Park; past board member and vice president of the North Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and past president and member of the Trailblazers.

He was a past member of the Metro Police Excess Force Board and a member of the civilian military council of Nellis Air Force Base.

Regan was past chairman of the national trade, travel and tourism task force of the American Legislative Exchange and past vice chairman of the National Conference of State Legislatures.

He served on the task force for development disabilities and was a past district director and national treasurer of the National Council for Community Relations.

Some of his honors included the Paragon Award from the National Council on Community Relations in 1987 and the Lion of the Year from the Las Vegas Host Lions Club in 1978.

In addition to his wife, Regan's other survivors include his sisters, Donna Carter of Easton, Mass., and Pella Cooling of Chatham, Mass.