Mark Lawrence Layton

Mark Lawrence Layton, 75, of Orem, Utah, died in his home Friday, September 26, 2025, after a short battle with metastatic lung cancer.

He was born March 25, 1950, in Lynwood, California, to Ruby Ethel Rauch and Homer Lawrence Layton. They raised him on Locust Avenue in nearby Compton with his five siblings. He enjoyed an adventurous youth riding his bicycle all over Compton, Long Beach, and Paramount; delivering The Press-Telegram newspaper; working in his father’s cabinet shop on Compton Boulevard; earning his Eagle Scout badge and visiting Camp Arrowhead; riding motorcycles with friends; building a hot rod; and getting into good-natured mischief in the neighborhood with his many friends.

“Fun” is the word most often mentioned when you ask friends and family to describe his personality.

Mark played football and ran sprints and hurdles for Dominguez High School, where he was elected Junior Class President before graduating in 1968. His ambitions until then were only to play football for a junior college, but his mother filled out an application to Brigham Young University (BYU). He was accepted.

He discovered rugby his freshman year, made lifelong friends, and narrowly escaped serious consequences for legendary troublemaking. After reading a headline about murder rates (“Provo First, Compton Worst”) in The Daily Universe, BYU’s campus paper, he realized he would like to raise his family in Utah Valley.

The summer of 1969, he returned to Compton to work at Western Craft, catching flats of cardboard as a large conveyor belt flung them into his chest. He recalled it being the worst job he ever had, but the pay was decent.

Since the Vietnam War had been raging for years, he wasn’t confident he’d have a future beyond his early 20s. He expected to be sent to fight in Vietnam and likely be killed there. However, March 25 was drawn 343rd in the draft lottery of December 1969. That late draft position enabled him to go on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Melbourne, Australia.

He loved his mission and the people he taught, befriended, and served. It changed him—he came to know the Lord and maintained unshakable religious faith until he died.

Following his mission, he returned to BYU and cultivated a full social life. He painted hot rods and luxury cars to help pay for school; played wing on the BYU Rugby Team, helping them win a national championship; and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art, as that was the major closest to his true interest, motion pictures. He grew his hair long in the 1970s and settled in Utah Valley for the rest of his life.

Some of his jobs after college included driving a dump truck, repairing cars, working as a cameraman for a nature TV show called “Alaska Outdoors,” coaching and substitute teaching at Timpview High in Provo, and teaching at a one-room alternative high school in Orem for students who were failing and ready to drop out.

He worked in marketing and communications for Novell in its early days, where he began producing events for the company. That led to a career producing live events and awards shows, most notably the Marconi Awards, general sessions of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention, the NuSkin convention, and Best of State, which he co-founded with his then-wife, Dana Miller Layton.

During his production career, he worked with and met many celebrities and leaders: the casts of 60 Minutes, Saturday Night Live, and All in the Family; Oprah Winfrey, President Ronald Reagan, Garth Brooks, Diana Ross, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, Carol Burnett, Robert Duvall, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Steve Jobs, members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and countless other politicians, business leaders, and entertainers.

He once arranged with the Beach Boys to have his kids play tambourines on stage with the band. As a lifelong Beatles fan, he was thrilled to meet Paul McCartney backstage at The Grammys. His daughter Mallory was even more thrilled to speak with the Jonas Brothers when Dad put them on the phone with her.

He told captivating stories and maintained his trademark humor until the very end. He loved cooking, firearms, traveling all across the world, reading daily news, restoring military vehicles and antique cars, and watching movies, NFL football, and major track meets on TV.

His skill as a painter was exceptional. He possessed incredible ability to paint in abstract, impressionist, and realist styles using multiple mediums. He was equally adept working with wood, metal, and all things mechanical.

Above all these interests and hobbies, he would tell you that he loved God and his family. He took great joy in providing for the five children he raised with Dana and cheering them on in their sports, performances, hobbies, and endeavors.

Mark was preceded in death by his parents and is survived by his five children, Michael Layton, Lauren Ahlborn (Mike), Jamie Kregger (Sam), Mallory Layton, and Jennifer Maxwell (Braden); his three grandchildren, Hannah Ahlborn, Ashley Ahlborn, and Calvin Kregger; and his five siblings, Grant Layton (Eileen), Lynne Layton, David Layton (Emily), Dean Layton (Margo), and Wendy Adamson (Andrew).

A viewing for family and friends will be held on Friday, October 17, 2025, from 6-8 pm at Wheeler-Sundberg Funeral Home, 495 South State Street, Orem. 

Funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, October 18, 2025, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel at 1035 South 800 East, Orem, Utah. A viewing will also be held that morning from 9:30-10:30 am at the church prior to the services. Close family will attend interment at the East Lawn Memorial Hills Cemetery, 4800 Timpview Dr, Provo, Utah.

In lieu of sending flowers, the family requests donations toward printing photos to display at the funeral. Donations can be made to paypal.me/laytonestate or https://venmo.com/u/Michael-Layton on Venmo.

Condolences may be expressed to the family on this page.