Thursday 10th December 1970

Lee Iacocca became president of Ford Motor Company. Iacocca joined Ford as an engineer in the 1940s, but quickly moved into marketing, where he gained influence quickly as a supporter of the Ford Mustang. Iacocca was eventually ousted from Ford in 1978. He went on to become president of the struggling Chrysler Corporation, which was saddled with an inventory of gas-guzzling road-yachts, just as the fuel shortage began. Iacocca made history by talking the government into offering Chrysler $1.5 billion in loans. The bailout worked, with the help of Iacocca’s streamlining measures. Chrysler recorded record profits in 1984.