密歇根新闻广播 汽车传奇李·艾柯卡去世

 

Automotive legend Lee Iacocca, known best for developing the Ford² Mustang and pulling Chrysler back from the brink³ of bankruptcy⁴ in the 1980s, has died. He was 94.

The son of Italian immigrants rose from a modest background to become a household name as CEO of Chrysler Corporation.

When Iacocca's father, Nicola, arrived at Ellis Island in 1902, a brand new American industry was grabbing headlines. Young men dreamed of owning a car — Nicola's son, Lee, dreamed of making them.

In 30 years, Iacocca worked his way up from an entry level engineering job to President of Ford.

The promotions⁵ were well deserved, says author Jason Vines, who worked at both Ford and Chrysler. Iacocca was smart and ambitious. He worked incredibly hard. And he inspired others to do the same.

"When Lee talked, people listened," Vines said.

One of Iacocca's greatest successes at Ford was the Mustang. Nothing like it existed at the time, but Vines says Iacocca had a sixth sense for what people wanted. Like an affordable⁶ four-seat sports car with pure American DNA⁷.

"And of course the Mustang is as strong or stronger than it's every been," Vines said. "And that was his baby. He didn't design it but he's the one who pushed it through when he was at the head of Ford Motor Company."

But - then something happened to Iacocca's golden boy career. The something was Chairman Henry Ford the Second. Their once-cordial relationship soured, and in 1978, Iacocca was fired.

It didn't take long for Chrysler to snap him up as its CEO.

But that move took him out of the frying pan into the fire.

Months after taking the job, Chrysler was in the headlines, on the verge⁸ of bankruptcy.

Since banks wouldn't give Chrysler any more money, the government was Iacocca's only hope. He endured countless⁹ hours in the halls of Congress in Washington, D.C., sat in the hot seat in Congressional hearings. He got the money.

"And he saved the company, not single-handedly, he had a good team around him," Vines said. "But it was his force, his persuasive¹⁰ abilities with Congress, with creditors¹¹, that really let Chrysler get the loan guarantees and then, of course, famously he paid them back early with interest."

Vines says everyone knew who Lee Iacocca was after that. Chrysler's ad guys decided¹² his straight to the point style was made for TV. The newly famous CEO would tell Americans why Chrysler was a better company, making better cars.

Chrysler began to make money again. Iacocca was not just well known, he was admired and beloved.

That's why President Ronald Reagan tapped Iacocca to lead private fundraising efforts of national importance.

Lady Liberty — and Ellis Island — had fallen into disrepair.

"The condition of the statue was not good," Stephen Briganti said. "It was deteriorating¹³ but it was not about to fall down. The condition of Ellis Island was terrible."

Briganti heads the Statue of Liberty–Ellis Island Foundation.

Briganti says once again, when Lee Iacocca talked, people listened. Money poured in. Big checks from corporations and foundations, but also ten, twenty dollar checks from ordinary Americans. Schoolkids collected quarters for the cause. The campaign raised $700 million, a huge sum at the time.

"His legacy¹⁴ will be the Statute¹⁵ of Liberty and Ellis Island more than it will be Chrysler," Briganti said. "The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, particularly the Statue of Liberty, will never go away. Chrysler may go away."

Iacocca retired¹⁶ from Chrysler in 1992. He gave a lot of speeches about the auto¹ industry, his career, and his life.

He once told an audience he felt he had lived the American Dream.

Fiat Chrysler released the following statement:

1 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

2 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

3 brink   

n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿

参考例句：

• The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。
• The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。

4 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

5 promotions   

促进( promotion的名词复数 )； 提升； 推广； 宣传

参考例句：

• All services or promotions must have an appeal and wide application. 所有服务或促销工作都必须具有吸引力和广泛的适用性。
• He promptly directed the highest promotions and decorations for General MacArthur. 他授予麦克阿瑟将军以最高的官阶和勋奖。

6 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

7 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

8 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

9 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

10 persuasive   

adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的

参考例句：

• His arguments in favour of a new school are very persuasive.他赞成办一座新学校的理由很有说服力。
• The evidence was not really persuasive enough.证据并不是太有说服力。

11 creditors   

n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

14 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

15 statute   

n.成文法，法令，法规；章程，规则，条例

参考例句：

• Protection for the consumer is laid down by statute.保障消费者利益已在法令里作了规定。
• The next section will consider this environmental statute in detail.下一部分将详细论述环境法令的问题。

16 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。