WAUKESHA - About 500 people attending a visitation Sunday for former Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus remembered him as humble, warm and smart.

The 81-year-old known for his loquaciousness and trademark red vest died Wednesday at his Waukesha home while watching television. He had suffered from heart and breathing problems.

Dreyfus was laid in state at the building named in his honor in Waukesha, said Pat Farley with Gov. Jim Doyle's office. Mourners came throughout the afternoon to pay their respects.

U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, state Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen and about a half-dozen state legislators attended.

Visitors streamed past three television screens showing videos of Dreyfus and his participation in Masonic activities.

A prayer service was slated for 5 p.m., but there would be no eulogies.

A lifelong friend, Gerald Beier, said he worked with Dreyfus on Masonic activities such as building a resident facility in Dousman.

Beier, 83, said Dreyfus remained humble, no matter how far he had gone in life.

"He never let his title or his position go to his head," Beier said. "He was just a common guy like us."

Waukesha Circuit Judge Mike Bohren knew Dreyfus for 20 years and served on the bench with his son, Lee Dreyfus Jr. Bohren said he always enjoyed speaking with Dreyfus because the former governor had a keen mind.

"I'll miss the intellect, it was always a joy to talk to him," Bohren said. "He was such a quick thinker and observer of what's going on."

Dreyfus, a Republican, served only one term as governor, from 1979 to 1983. He upset Rep. Bob Kasten in the primary and defeated acting Gov. Martin Schreiber in the general election in 1978.

He surprised party leaders by deciding not to seek a second term four years later, saying he wanted to return to private life.

Dreyfus was chancellor at UW-Stevens Point before running for governor.

He's noted for having signed the nation's first statewide gay rights law in 1982. The measure made it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in housing, employment and public accommodations.

Sunday's event was for the public. A private funeral was planned for family and close friends Monday at St. Matthias Episcopal Church in Waukesha. A private burial was to follow at Prairie Home Cemetery in Waukesha.