Riordan and wife decide to separate

Former Mayor Richard Riordan said Friday that he and his wife, Nancy Daly Riordan, have decided to separate.

The couple, who have been fixtures at city and social events since he began his eight-year tenure as mayor in 1993, have been married for nine years. This was the third marriage for Riordan, who turned 77 on May 1, and the second for Daly Riordan, 65.

Shortly before they wed, on Valentine’s Day in 1998, Riordan said the two had found common cause on issues involving children’s welfare. He said Friday that they both continue to be active in nonprofit organizations supporting schools, literacy and Los Angeles County museums. Daly Riordan chairs the board of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and is a founder of United Friends of the Children, an organization formed to support programs for foster children.

Riordan, a longtime investor and attorney, is chairman of the Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools, a nonprofit charter school management organization. His Riordan Foundation, established in 1981, distributes computers to schools and buys books for elementary schools. He also owns the Original Pantry in downtown Los Angeles and Gladstone’s 4 Fish and Mort’s Deli in Pacific Palisades.

Daly Riordan has been receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer, which was diagnosed last year. In 2001, Riordan was successfully treated for prostate cancer. Last year, he had heart bypass surgery.

Reached by phone, Daly Riordan said she had no comment.

*

martha.groves@latimes.com