Henry Ford (Lives and Legacies Series)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.41 (876 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0195316924 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 336 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2016-04-24 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
As Curcio indicates, Ford didn’t “invent’ the modern automobile, but he was a brilliant innovator who understood how to get man and machines to work in tandem. Although he instituted color-blind hiring practices, he promoted a particularly virulent form of anti-Semitism. --Jay Freeman . This was, of course, enlightened self-interest, but Curcio also asserts that Ford acted out of genuine altruistic motives. Here Ford first revealed his fascination with machines and their practical application. Curcio tracks Ford’s life and accomplishments, beginning with his “moderately prosperous” childhood on a Michigan farm. He was also a social visionary whose efforts to provide high wages helped foster the expansion of the middle class to include industrial workers. Curcio has provided a useful sur
Vincent Curcio is the author of Suicide Blonde: The Life of Gloria Grahame; Chrysler: The Life and Times of an Automotive Genius; and, with Steven Englund, Charlie's Prep. He was the General Manager and Producer of Lucille Lortel's White Barn Theater for 25 years.
Henry Ford not only founded Ford Motor Company but institutionalized assembly line production and, some would argue, created the American middle class. Hitler admired him greatly, both for his anti-Semitism and his autocratic leadership, displaying Ford's picture in his bedroom and keeping a copy of Ford's MyLife and Work by his bedside. Most great figures in American history reveal great contradictions, and Henry Ford is no exception. Such was his popularity that in 1923, the homespun, clean-living, xenophobic Henry Ford nearly won the Republican presidential nomination.This new volume in the Lives and Legacies series explores the full impact of Ford's indisputable greatness, the deep flaws that complicate his legacy, and what he means for our own time.. He urbanized the modern world, and then tried to drag it back into a romanticized rural past he'd helped to destroy. He offered good pay, good benefits, English language classes, and employment for those who struggled to find jobs--handicapped, African-American, and female workers. By constantly improving his product and increasing sales, Ford was able to lower the price of the automobile until it became a universal commodity. As the American auto industry struggles to reinvent itself, Vincent Curcio's timely biography offers a wealth of new insight into the man who started it all. He paid his workers so well that, for the first t
John Reagan said A masterful work of concision. There may be someone currently writing who knows as much about the history of the American automobile industry as Vincent Curcio,but if there is, I don't know who that person is. I've long been interested in this history, and as a result have read much about Ford. But I was not surprised when I read this new book to find that Curcio has distilled his vast knowledge into such a wonderful book. Curcio is more than a. A good read. Given the enormous number of books written about Ford, it's good to read this summary. The writing is straightforward and clear, and easy to read. I think Curcio was evenhanded in his handling of Mr. Ford; he gave both the good and the bad, and couldn't make a decision about which was foremost. Though clearly he admired Ford despite . Much More Than an Industrial Titan Joseph G. Wick Vincent Curcio is an experienced biographer who, incidentally, also wrote a biography of Walter Chrysler. So it is no surprise that this biography is as much a story of the automobile business as it is of Henry Ford. This book is extremely well researched and presents a picture of Ford touching both his virtues and vices. The extent of research is reflected in the acknowledgments, notes, and index which take up 30