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December 3, 2007
Roger B. Smith, the man who set General Motors on a new and controversial course in the 1980s, has died in Detroit after a brief illness, according to thecarconnections.com. He was 82.
Smith joined General Motors in 1949 after serving as a radioman for Admiral Arleigh Burke during World War II. He was at the center of major events at the automaker, having served early on in his career to GM´s legendary Alfred P. Sloan. After working for Sloan, Smith moved steadily up through the organization during its post-World War II heyday, earning a reputation for financial acumen.
That acumen was challenged as Smith was named chairman just as the industry was shaken by a surge in oil prices, following the 1979 Iranian revolution, and new competition from Japan.
He later became the object of ridicule with the release of Michael Moore's groundbreaking satire, "Roger and Me."
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth 
at 10:54 AM to GM
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