Jump to content

Passing of Bob Gregorie


Guest

Recommended Posts

Thank you for the heads-up Bill, a sad day for all Lincoln fans, Bob Gregorie was written up and pictured recently in the Lincoln Clubs extensive write up of the newly restored 1939 prototype Lincoln Continental, the only survivor of 6 that were built, Gregorie actually owned this very car, I will scan and send the article to anyone who is interested, let me know your e-mail address, OC

At 09:32 AM 12/3/02 -0700, you wrote:

>DETROIT, Dec. 2 - Eugene T. Gregorie, the first design chief of the Ford

>Motor Company and the creator of the Lincoln Continental, died on Sunday in

>St. Augustine, Fla., where he lived. He was 94.

>

>Mr. Gregorie, who was known as Bob, also designed what would become the

>1949 Mercury, which was driven by James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause,"

>and the 1936 Lincoln Zephyr, which the Museum of Modern Art in New York

>called "the first successfully streamlined car in America." After working

>for ship design companies in New York, Mr. Gregorie moved to Detroit in

>1929 to work in the auto industry.

>

>He was immediately hired by General Motors but lost his job a few months

>later at the start of the Depression. Mr. Gregorie was 22 when he was hired

>in 1931 by Edsel B. Ford, president of Ford and son of the founder, Henry Ford.

>

>"Gregorie's primary attribute was he could translate what Edsel Ford wanted

>into three-dimensional designs," said Jim Farrell, a lawyer in Roseburg,

>Ore., who has written extensively about the history of Ford's automotive

>designs. "He could sit and sketch while Edsel talked in his office."

>

>In 1935, Edsel Ford made Mr. Gregorie the chief of Ford's new design

>department.

>

>"The difference between Gregorie and every other chief designer is that he

>himself did all the design work, as opposed to his staff," said Henry L.

>Dominguez, a General Motors engineer and the author of "Edsel Ford & E. T.

>Gregorie."

>

>His designs included the Lincoln Continental, which was introduced in 1939.

>

>Ford announced earlier this year that it would stop making the Continental

>as part of a company wide restructuring. Mr. Gregorie left the company soon

>after Edsel Ford's death in 1943. He returned in 1944 at the request of

>Henry Ford II, but left again two years later when he found himself

>frequently at odds with top management.

>

>At 38, Mr. Gregorie moved to St. Augustine and turned to sailing and

>designing yachts.

>

>Mr. Gregorie is survived by his wife, Evelyn, and three nieces.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I recall my dad telling me about when he was a kid in Richmond, VA, walking by

the old soldiers' home where Civil War veterans lived.

Gregorie's death reminded me of that story -- the time of the great classics

didn't seem quite so long ago as long as he was alive. Now we've lost that

tangible link to our past.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...