Forbes Says Bren, Worth $2 Billion, Is O.C.’s Richest

Donald L. Bren, the majority owner and chairman of the Irvine Co., is the richest man in Orange County and the 48th wealthiest person in America, according to the annual Forbes 400 Richest People in America survey, released Sunday.

Bren, 64, is worth $2 billion, the same sum listed in 1994, when he was ranked by Forbes as the 35th richest man in America.

Other Orange County residents on this year’s list are:

* Jim Jannard of Irvine, founder of Oakley Sunglasses, who is worth $1 billion, ranking him 123rd in the nation.

* Anne Catherine Getty Earhart of Laguna Beach, whose holdings were listed at $600 million, placing her at 255th in the nation.

* Laguna Beach clothing designer Mossimo Giannulli, who ranked No. 343 on the list with a net worth of $490 million.

Among those who didn’t show up on the magazine’s list was Joan Irvine Smith, who has residences in Corona del Mar, San Juan Capistrano and Laguna Beach. In 1994, Smith was ranked 341st with a worth of $350 million.

Investor Warren Edward Buffett of Omaha, Neb., the country’s second richest person with a $15-billion net worth, maintains a home in Laguna Beach’s Emerald Bay.

Forbes lists the richest man in America as Microsoft Chairman William Henry Gates III, of Bellevue, Wash., with a net worth of $18.5 billion.