Description
Author: Lawrence R. Gustin, Hardbound, 285 Pages, ISBN: 9780802834355, First Edition, 1973 - Slightly torn dustjacket - book in excellent condition !
Except for car buffs—who may recall the Durant automobile—and business historians, few people today would recognize the name of William Crapo Durant. But of all those colorful and inventive men who led this country into the age of the automobile, Durant was probably the most flamboyant; and in terms of organizational ability and accomplishment, he was also perhaps the most important.
Had Billy Durant not appeared on the stage during the auto industry's earliest years, there would have been no General Motors—now the largest industrial corporation the world has known. There would be no Chevrolet—the world's best-selling car. It is likely that there would be no Buick or Oldsmobile either. and possibly no Pontiac or Cadillac. The careers of such men as Walter P. Chrysler, Charles W. Nash. and Alfred P. Sloan would certainly have taken different courses.
How did Durant come to exercise so broad an influence in the emerging auto industry? And why has he been virtually forgotten for more than a quarter of a century?
To find the answers to these questions, automotive reporter Lawrence Gustin turned to Durant's widow, who provided him with a wealth of previously unpublished material in the form of autobiographical notes. letters, and documents from Durant's personal papers. In addition, Gustin used interviews with Mrs. Durant, two of her husband's personal secretaries, and others who had known and worked with the man who created General Motors.
