Lee Iacocca

He saved Chrysler — and an entire generation of American jobs went with it. Lee Iaco

cca, born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, the son of Nicola Iacocca, an Italian immigrant from San Marco dei Cavoti, became one of the most legendary figures in American business history. After leading the development of the Ford Mustang, he took over a nearly bankrupt Chrysler Corporation in 1978 and orchestrated one of the most dramatic corporate turnarounds in American history, securing a federal loan guarantee and personally pledging his own salary cut to prove his commitment.

Iacocca was Italian American to his core — direct, hardworking, fiercely loyal to the workers under him, and completely unwilling to accept failure as the final answer. He became a genuine American folk hero in the 1980s, his face and voice in Chrysler’s own commercials, telling Americans directly: if you can find a better car, buy it. They couldn’t. He saved the company and tens of thousands of jobs in the process.

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