William Crapo Durant, 1861-
1947. An
American industrialist/
entrepreneur. He was originally a maker of
horseless carriages, the family
business, but he got into the
automobile industry via his purchase of fledgling
Buick Motors in 1904. Durant then embarked on a concept of a
conglomerate tying together various companies into a larger entity:
General Motors; he brought together various companies, including Oakland,
Oldsmobile, and Cadillac.
Ford Motor Company was almost purchased and made part of
GM.
Financial problems led to Durant's ouster around 1910. The company's reorganization brought about a leaner GM, consolidated around fewer brand names: Oakland (now Pontiac), Cadillac, Buick, Olds, and GMC Truck. Durant's return to the auto industry was via a new car, designed by race-car driver Gaston Chevrolet; success led to another attempt at controlling GM, also a success: Durant gained a controlling interest in 1916, and Chevy became part of GM, during which time he added Delco (the former Dayton Engineering Laboratories), and Fisher Body (famous for the phrase "Body by Fisher", long after being swallowed up into GM).
Later financial troubles, in the 1920s, led to his last ouster, but GM had become a serious, and permanent, rival to Ford. Durant's next venture, Durant Motors, was not a success; the auto industry had become mature enough that new upstarts had less of a chance of gaining a foothold. I don't see any of you driving Durants these days.