By Erika I. Ritchie, OC Register
Paul Musco, a man lauded for his extraordinary life of service, leadership and philanthropy throughout Southern California, has died. He was 95.
“He had an incredible sense of humor and was one of the most generous people I have ever known,” said Jim Doti, president emeritus at Chapman University, one of the places in Orange County where Musco and his wife, Marybelle, focused their efforts to help. “But what stands out in my mind is his positive spirit. After being with Paul, I always felt more positive about what can be accomplished. His spirit inspired me to think of how we can make Chapman a better place for our students.”
Musco and his wife did that in a significant way when in March 2016, Chapman University opened its $78 million Marybelle and Sebastian P. Musco Center for the Arts, a 1,044-seat performance space that showcases student theater as well as professional opera – a favorite of Musco’s – and stage productions. The Muscos contributed $39 million to that effort.
“It’s incredibly difficult to overstate the impact of Paul Musco’s vision and his generosity on all the arts in Southern California,” said Richard Bryant, executive director of the Musco Center. “It’s hard to imagine being without him here.
“He came all the time with Marybelle,” Bryant said. “He was joyous; he cared about everybody here. He wanted the center to be the best of the best and he loved the students.”
The couple also took a great personal interest in all details of the project.
“It was that personal involvement that created this fabulous design and acoustic-superb tool for the advancement of performing arts education at Chapman,” Bryant said. “That’s what they wanted and that’s what they did.”
And, even more, Musco cared deeply for the students and, with his wife, attended many of their performances, Bryant said. “The true definition of philanthropy begins with engagement. He was the best.”
Musco was born in Providence, Rhode Island, to Sicilian immigrants Carmelo and Lucia Musco. His father, who worked as a school janitor for 35 years, emphasized the importance of effort and education, which Musco made part of his daily life. He was one of 10 children, including a twin brother.
A plaque dedicated to his parents hangs in the Musco Center’s ensemble room. It credits them for exposing Musco to a lifelong love of the arts, saying “Paul still remembers as a child listening to the Metropolitan Opera every morning at 10 a.m. It’s in their nurturing environment that his love for opera first began.”
Parker Kennedy, chairman of the university’s board of trustees, described Musco as a mentor “and role model extraordinaire, the living definition of a servant leader.
“As an advisor, he was a source of experience, wisdom and inspiration that few could match,” Kennedy said. “Paul was a tremendously hard worker who was always the first to roll up his sleeves when there was work to be done.”
Musco made the money he then chose to give away with Gemini Industries, a gold and silver refinery he started in 1974; still an industry leader today, the Santa Ana-based company developed the first process to economically recover platinum and palladium from spent autocatalysts.
Musco first became involved with Chapman University in 2003, then giving $55,000 to Chapman Celebrates. In 2004, he joined its Board of Trustees. In 2005, he established the Paul and Marybelle Musco Professorship in Italian, which works to advance the Italian language and heritage study. The Muscos also brought the annual “Paul’s Pasta Piazza Party,” to Chapman. The event transforms Attallah Piazza into a vision of Italy with a feast of Italian food and music.
The couple has also made significant contributions to the university’s Escalette Permanent Art Collection, Argyros Global Citizens Plaza, Dodge College of Film & Media Arts, Leatherby Libraries, Wilkinson College, Argyros School of Business and Economics, Economic Science Institute, Rodgers Center for Holocaust Education and Fish Interfaith Center.
“We are heartbroken at the loss of our dear friend, Paul Musco, and our thoughts go out to Marybelle and their entire family,” a statement from the Argyros family said. George Argyros was chairman of Chapman’s trustees’ board for 26 years. “His smile, good humor and relentless energy lit up every room he entered. Paul’s generosity and countless contributions to Orange County, especially Chapman University, will enrich generations to come. He will be forever missed.”
Musco contributed to many other groups and organizations in Orange County and beyond, including the Orange County School of the Arts, the LA Opera and St. Michael’s Abbey.
The Marybelle Musco Dance Center at the Orange County School of the Arts is another arts standout in the region, providing state-of-the-art dance studios. Finished in 2015, the facility more than doubled the school’s capacity to instruct students in dance. OCSA now serves a student body of nearly 2,300 students from over 100 cities throughout Southern California. The 350,000 square foot urban campus is spread across 10 commercial and historic buildings.
“It has transformed our school,” said Ralph Opacic, founder of OCSA, who similar to Musco was passionate his real about inspiring the next generation of young artists through arts education. “It’s the first time we had a dance facility to fit the needs of our students.”
Opacic recalled watching the construction with Musco. The two first met in 1978 when Opacic went to Thanksgiving dinner at Musco’s home. Opacic had gone to high school with Musco’s niece, the daughter of Musco’s identical twin.
“He said, ‘Would you ever thought you be doing this 40 years ago?’” Opacic recalled Musco asking him, then saying. “That was the most expensive Thanksgiving dinner I’ve ever hosted.”
“I chuckle at that to this day,” Opacic said.
Father Justin Ramos at St. Michaels Abby remembered his first meeting with Musco during a two-and-a-half-hour call 12 years ago. They talked about Musco’s immigrant parents, his childhood and his upbringing. Since then, Ramos said they shared many lunches and dinners.
“I especially enjoyed seeing how much he loved to make people happy, whether it was the busboy, waitress, the barber, or the Abbot of St. Michael’s,” Ramos said. “He found joy in helping people.
“He and Marybelle were an integral part of one of the most ambitious projects in the Catholic Church: the building of St. Michael’s Abbey,” Ramos said. The striking church and monastery nestled in the hills of Silverado Canyon opened earlier this year. “This project would not have happened without the Muscos. We are forever grateful.Paul would often say, ‘If I were to die today, I will have died a happy man.’”
