DeLorean Believed His Own Myth
Charles McGrath writes in the NY Times today about an automotive icon.
"With the possible exception of Lee Iacocca, John DeLorean was the most colorful car man ever to emerge from corporate Detroit, and though no one knew it then, he was also the beginning of the end of carmaking as it used to be known. At first he was a little like the Wizard of Oz, a tinkerer with an even bigger gift for packaging and spectacle, but in time his story took on overtones of ''The Great Gatsby,'' P.T. Barnum and ''Saturday Night Fever.'' He eventually succumbed to that most American of delusions -- he believed his own myth. The Times story then explains his transition later in life, as he dated younger women and tried to be young again.
"By then, like a carmaker bringing out a new model, DeLorean had retooled himself. He lost 40 pounds, dyed his hair and grew sideburns. He also had a nose job and a chin job that entailed the insertion of foamlike material into his jaw line to create a craggier profile. To Davis, he looked as if ''a third thumb were sprouting from his chin.'' DeLorean took to carrying a compact so he could check on his appearance. He traded in his dark sack suits, the official uniform of corporate Detroit, for sleek Italian jobs and began wearing gold chains and high-necked shirts with collar points so long they resembled batwings. In photos he looks a little like Tom Jones or Engelbert Humperdinck.
When he finally died of a stroke at 80, in his casket he wore a black motorcycle jacket, blue jeans and a denim shirt. A pair of shades was tucked into the zipper."
"With the possible exception of Lee Iacocca, John DeLorean was the most colorful car man ever to emerge from corporate Detroit, and though no one knew it then, he was also the beginning of the end of carmaking as it used to be known. At first he was a little like the Wizard of Oz, a tinkerer with an even bigger gift for packaging and spectacle, but in time his story took on overtones of ''The Great Gatsby,'' P.T. Barnum and ''Saturday Night Fever.'' He eventually succumbed to that most American of delusions -- he believed his own myth. The Times story then explains his transition later in life, as he dated younger women and tried to be young again.
"By then, like a carmaker bringing out a new model, DeLorean had retooled himself. He lost 40 pounds, dyed his hair and grew sideburns. He also had a nose job and a chin job that entailed the insertion of foamlike material into his jaw line to create a craggier profile. To Davis, he looked as if ''a third thumb were sprouting from his chin.'' DeLorean took to carrying a compact so he could check on his appearance. He traded in his dark sack suits, the official uniform of corporate Detroit, for sleek Italian jobs and began wearing gold chains and high-necked shirts with collar points so long they resembled batwings. In photos he looks a little like Tom Jones or Engelbert Humperdinck.
When he finally died of a stroke at 80, in his casket he wore a black motorcycle jacket, blue jeans and a denim shirt. A pair of shades was tucked into the zipper."
posted by Max Hartshorne at 1:57 PM
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