Edwin Stephan, the founder of Royal Caribbean Cruises, died Friday at 87 years old, the Miami-based cruise major announced Saturday.
He founded the New York-listed cruise major in 1969 as Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, which the following year launched the 724-berth Song of Norway (built 1970) as "the first ship built for warm-water cruising," the company said. The ship was sold for scrap in 2013.
Today, the Richard Fain-led company, which became Royal Caribbean Cruises in 1997 when it bought Celebrity Cruises, has 63 ships under seven brands.
"Ed was an inspiration and a great friend to many in the company. He was an honourable man who loved his family, his work, and his community," chief executive Richard Fain said in a statement.
"Our heartfelt condolences go out to Ed's loving wife, Helen, and the children he adored, Michael, Samantha, Gary, and Kristina.
"He will be deeply missed by all of us here, by his many friends, and by our community."
Royal Caribbean said the cruise industry saw "many firsts" during Stephan's tenure as the company's president and eventually board vice-chairman, including open-air decks.
Stephan also came up with the idea for the round, cantilevered Viking Crown Lounge "that made Royal ships stand out from the crowd", the company said.
"Royal Caribbean was also the first to stretch a major cruise ship by inserting an additional mid-section into Song of Norway in 1978."
'An honourable man'
Royal Caribbean has published an obituary prominently on the company's website in which Fain praised Stephan for his "passion for innovation" in founding the company.
"Ed Stephan started this company with a passion for innovation and those two terms — passion and innovation — remain core to Royal Caribbean’s culture today,” Fain said.
“He was an inspiration and a great friend to many in the company. He was an honourable man who loved his family, his work, and his community.
"Our company and our industry are in debt to the size of his dreams, keenness of his vision, and the kindness of his leadership.”
The obituary said Stephan, a Wisconsin native who disliked the cold, served in the Korean War as a decorated army radar technician before settling in Miami to start a career in the hotel business.
While managing a hotel next to a pier from which old ships made turn-around cruises to Bahamas' Nassau and Havana, Cuba, he joined a steamship company and then a new cruise line before traveling to Oslo, Norway, in 1968 with an idea for a cruise company.
He soon met with Norwegian ship owners Anders Wilhelmsen — who is still Royal Caribbean’s largest shareholder — Sigurd Skaugen and Gotaas Larsen.
The four of them founded Royal Caribbean Cruise Line from that January 1969 meeting, choosing the word "royal" to denote Stephan's demand for a high level of customer service.
A family service will be held to honour Stephan's memory.
