John DeLorean

John Zachary DeLorean (born January 6, 1925 in Detroit , Michigan , † March 19, 2005 in Summit , New Jersey ) was an American manager and sports car maker. He is best known for developing muscle cars such as the Pontiac GTO , the Firebird and, with his own company, the DeLorean Motor Company , the DeLorean DMC-12 .

Life

Tombstone of John Z. DeLorean at White Chapel Memorial Park Cemetery in Troy, Michigan

John Zachary DeLorean was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1925, the eldest of four sons of Zachary and Kathryn Pribak DeLorean. His father Zachary, who immigrated to the United States from Romania at the age of 20, worked for the Ford Motor Company . His mother, also an immigrant, was of Austro-Hungarian descent and worked for General Electric . His father drank and abused his family. The marriage ended in divorce in 1942.

DeLorean attended Cass Tech , a technical high school in Detroit , where he was taught by Evangeline Lodge Land, the mother of Charles Lindbergh , among others . His good performance enabled him to study at the Lawrence Institute of Technology , a recognized college in Detroit. In 1943 he was drafted and served three years in the United States Army . With his mother and siblings living in poverty, DeLorean initially worked for the Public Lighting Commission for 18 months before continuing his studies at the Lawrence Institute and receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering in 1948 . DeLorean then made a short living selling life insurance before enrolling at the Chrysler Institute of Engineering , from which he graduated in 1952 with a master's degree in automotive engineering. At the same time, DeLorean began to attend evening classes at the University of Michigan , whereupon he received an MBA in 1957 .

Shortly after graduation, DeLorean left Chrysler to work for Packard Motor Car Company , where he established himself as an engineer and after four years was promoted to head of research and development. As the company neared bankruptcy, DeLorean was poached by General Motors in 1956 to work for Pontiac . In the following years he developed the reputation of a child prodigy and was promoted several times within a few years. In 1961 he became chief engineer and in 1965, at the age of 40, he became the youngest head of the Pontiac department. In 1969 he was appointed head of Chevrolet and in 1972 he was named a board member and vice president of General Motors' entire car and truck production in North America. Although he was considered a candidate for the presidency of GM, he submitted his resignation in April 1973, justifying it with the desire to get more involved in the social field. However, rumor has it that his resignation anticipated his release.

After his resignation, DeLorean assumed the presidency of the National Alliance of Businessmen , a charity founded by Lyndon B. Johnson and Henry Ford . In 1979 he published the critical book On A Clear Day You Can See General Motors with author Patrick Wright about his time at GM.

In 1975 DeLorean founded the DeLorean Motor Company to help realize his dream of a safe, ethical, environmentally sound automobile. The only model ever produced, the DeLorean DMC-12, was designed as a two-seater sports car for the US market and was produced in Dunmurry , Northern Ireland from spring 1981 to the end of 1982 . The car became known internationally through the films in the Back-to-the-Future trilogy.

However, with its high weight and weak engine, the vehicle was subject to targeted competitors such as the Chevrolet Corvette or the Porsche 911 . The crisis in the US car market that broke out in the early 1980s and the expensive vehicle did not allow the sales that would have been necessary to be profitable in the long term. When the British government, which had backed the company with a large loan, insisted on the punctual payment of an interest claim, DeLorean Motor Company Ltd. Filed for bankruptcy in February 1982. John DeLorean tried in vain to find new investors in the months that followed.

On October 19, 1982, DeLorean was arrested by the DEA and FBI on charges of drug trafficking. A former drug smuggler and DEA informant had embroiled DeLorean in a fictional drug deal. The man had given DeLorean the prospect of bailing out his insolvent company through investors, but this turned out to be financing through drug trafficking, smuggling and money laundering in the course of the specific negotiations. Indeed, DeLorean had accepted the suggestions made. While negotiating with DEA ​​agents, DeLorean drafted a letter that was only to be opened in the event of his unnatural death. This showed that he feared for the safety and life of his family if he got out of the deal. In the subsequent process , DeLorean was able to defend himself successfully with the argument that he had entered into the drug trade, which the authorities ultimately initiated independently because of fear for his family and because of the threats by the DEA agents . He was acquitted on all counts.

In 1985 DeLorean published his autobiography DeLorean .

After completion of the DeLorean Motor Company John DeLorean had 1,999 personal bankruptcy explain.

He died on March 19, 2005 in Summit, New Jersey, after suffering a stroke . His ashes were buried in the White Chapel Cemetery in Troy, Michigan .

literature

• John Lamm: DeLorean - Stainless Steel Illusion. Motorbooks International, 1983, ISBN 978-0-930880-09-5 (English).
• Hillel Levin: Grand Delusions: The Cosmic Career of John DeLorean. The Viking Press, New York City 1983, ISBN 978-0-670-26685-2 (English).
• Hillel Levin: John DeLorean - The Maverick Mogul. Orbis Publishing, London 1983, ISBN 978-0-85613-561-3 (English).
• Ivan Fallon, James Srodes: Dream Maker: The Rise and Fall of John Z. Delorean. Putnam Pub Group, New York City 1985, ISBN 978-0-399-12821-9 (English).
• John DeLorean, Ted Black: DeLorean. Zondervan, Grand Rapids (Michigan) 1985, ISBN 0-310-37940-7 (English).
• Michael Schäfer: Too early for the future - the DeLorean drama. Delius Klasing publishing house, Bielefeld 2011, ISBN 978-3-7688-3364-6 .
• Nick Sutton: The DeLorean Story: The Car, The People, The Scandal. Haynes Publishing Group, 2013, ISBN 978-0-85733-314-8 (English).

Movie

• Driven, feature film from 2018

Individual evidence

1. ↑ See the official biography on Google Books
2. ^ ^{A b} John Z. De Lorean, Ted Schwarz: DeLorean. Zondervan Pub. House, Grand Rapids 1985, ISBN 0-310-37940-7 .
3. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from December 10, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ↑ Driven in the Internet Movie Database (English)