Kenneth L. Lay, Ex-Chairman of Enron, Dies By THE NEW YORK TIMES Published: July 5, 2006 HOUSTON - Enron's founder and chairman, Kenneth L. Lay, died of a heart attack at his vacation home in Colorado, according to his spokeswoman. "Ken Lay passed away early this morning in Aspen. The Lays have a very large family with whom they need to communicate. And out of respect for the family, we will release further details at a later time," Kelly L. Kimberly said in a statment this morning. In May, Mr. Lay was found guilty on six counts of fraud and conspiracy and four counts of bank fraud. The former chief executive, Jeffrey K. Skilling, was convicted of 18 counts of fraud and conspiracy and one count of insider trading. For years, Enron's gravity-defying stock price made it a Wall Street darling and an icon of the ''New Economy'' of the 1990's. But its sudden collapse at the end of 2001 and revelation as little more than a house of cards left Enron, with its crooked E logo, the premier public symbol of corporate ignominy. Investors and employees lost billions when Enron shares became worthless. Enron's fall had a far greater impact than on just the energy industry by heightening nervousness among average investors about the transparency of American companies. ''The Enron case and all the other scandals and cases that trailed after it may have finally punctured that romance with Wall Street that has been true of American culture for a while now,'' said Steve Fraser, a historian and author of ''Every Man a Speculator: A History of Wall Street in American Life.'' At Enron, Mr. Skilling was the visionary from the world of management consulting who spearheaded the company's rapid ascent by fastening on new ways to turn commodities, like natural gas and electricity, into lucrative financial instruments.