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Great American Business Leaders of the 20th Century

 
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163 Results
Thomas Adams, Jr.
American Chicle Company, 1899–1922
Howard L. Aller
American Power and Light Company, 1935–1951
Jules S. Bache
J. S. Bache & Company, 1892–1944
Ian K. Ballantine
Ballantine Books, 1952–1974
Louis F. Bantle
UST, 1973–1993
Enos M. Barton
Western Electric Company, 1886–1908
Edward Bausch
Bausch and Lomb Company, 1926–1935
Edward T. Bedford
Corn Products Refining Company, 1906–1930
Henry H. Benedict
Remington Typewriter Company, 1895–1913
William Bernbach
Doyle Dane Bernbach, 1949–1976
Stephen Birch
Kennecott Copper, 1915–1933
Clarence Birdseye
General Seafood's Company, 1924–1929
Harold Blancke
Celanese Corporation of America, 1946–1966
Fred J. Borch
General Electric Company, 1963–1972
James L. Broadhead
FPL Group, 1989–2000
Alvin G. Brush
American Home Products, 1935–1965
Arde Bulova
Bulova Watch Company, 1930–1958
Vincent A. Calarco
Crompton Corporation, 1985–2004
Floyd L. Carlisle
St. Regis Paper Company, 1916–1934
Willis H. Carrier
Carrier Corporation, 1914–1948
Richard W. Clark
Dick Clark Productions, 1956–2007
Ben Cohen
Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, 1978–1994
John L. Collyer
B. F. Goodrich Company, 1939–1953
Herman Cone II
Cone Mills Corporation, 1938–1950
John T. Connor
Merck & Company, 1955–1964
Joseph F. Cullman III
Philip Morris Companies, 1957–1979
Francis B. Davis Jr.
United States Rubber Company, 1929–1942
Jerry Della Femina
Della Femina and Travisano, 1967–1986
Fred DeLuca
Subway Sandwiches, 1965–Present
Frank N. Doubleday
Doubleday and Company, 1897–1927
Nelson Doubleday
Doubleday and Company, 1928–1946
Donald W. Douglas
Douglas Aircraft Company, 1928–1957
Millard S. Drexler
Gap, 1995–2002
George Eastman
Eastman Kodak Company, 1881–1923
Michael D. Eisner
Walt Disney Company, 1984–2005
Lawrence J. Ellison
Oracle Corporation, 1977–Present
John A. Ewald
Avon Products, 1944–1967
Lothar W. Faber
Eberhard-Faber Company, 1898–1943
Walter A. Fallon
Eastman Kodak Company, 1972–1983
Henry M. Flagler
Florida East Coast Railway, 1886–1913
Edward A. Fox
Student Loan Marketing Association, 1973–1990
Clarence Francis
General Foods Corporation, 1935–1943
Richard S. Fuld, Jr.
Lehman Brothers and Company, 1994–2008
Richard M. Furlaud
Squibb Corporation, 1968–1989
Henry W. Gadsden
Merck & Company, 1965–1975
Frank E. Gannett
Gannett Company, 1906–1957
David L. Geffen
Geffen Records, 1984–1989
Richard L. Gelb
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, 1972–1994
Louis V. Gerstner, Jr.
IBM, 1993–2002
Vincent A. Gierer, Jr.
UST, 1993–Present
Harvey Golub
American Express Company, 1993–2001
J. Peter Grace
W. R. Grace and Company, 1945–1992
Katharine M. Graham
Washington Post, 1963–1979
Earl G. Graves
Black Enterprise Magazine, 1970–Present
Maurice R. Greenberg
American International Group, 1967–1989
Eugene P. Grisanti
International Flavors & Fragrances, 1985–1999
Robert C. Guccione
Penthouse International Limited, 1965–2003
William Guthy
Guthy-Renker Corporation, 1988–2004
Armand Hammer
Occidental Oil Company, 1957–1990
John R. Hegeman
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, 1891–1918
Paul C. Henshaw
Homestake Mining Company, 1971–1982
Alonzo B. Hepburn
Chase National Bank, 1904–1911
Elon H. Hooker
Hooker Chemical Company, 1909–1938
John J. Horan
Merck & Company, 1976–1985
George A. Hormel
Hormel and Company, 1891–1929
Amory Houghton
Corning Glass Company, 1930–1960
Amory Houghton, Jr.
Corning Glass Company, 1964–1982
Carl C. Icahn
Icahn & Company, 1968–Present
John E. Jonsson
Texas Instruments, 1951–1958
Henry J. Kaiser
Kaiser Industries, 1914–1956
John A. Kimberly
Kimberly-Clark Corporation, 1880–1928
Anne Klein
Anne Klein & Company, 1968–1974
Joseph P. Knapp
Knapp & Company, 1891–1951
Richard J. Kogan
Schering-Plough Corporation, 1996–2003
William E. LaMothe
Kellogg Company, 1979–1991
William F. Laporte
American Home Products, 1965–1981
Ralph S. Larsen
Johnson & Johnson Company, 1989–2002
Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder, 1946–1982
Leonard A. Lauder
Estee Lauder, 1982–1999
Ralph Lauren
Polo, Ralph Lauren, 1968–Present
Rochelle Lazarus
Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, 1997–Present
Samuel J. Lefrak
Lefrak Organization, 1948–2003
Philip Lehman
Lehman Brothers and Company, 1901–1925
Robert Lehman
Lehman Brothers and Company, 1925–1969
William Levitt
Levitt & Sons, 1929–1968
Edward T. Lewis
Essence Communications, 1969–Present
Leroy A. Lincoln
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, 1936–1951
J. Bruce Llewellyn
Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Company, 1985–Present
Marcus Loew
Loew's, 1906–1927
Francisco A. Lorenzo
Texas Air Corporation, 1972–1990
Robert P. Luciano
Schering-Plough Corporation, 1982–1995
Edgar F. Luckenbach, Jr.
Luckenbach Steamship Company, 1960–1974
Clifford D. Mallory
Mallory (C. D.) and Company, 1919–1941
Joseph A. Martino
National Lead Company (NL Industries), 1947–1969
David H. McConnell
Avon Products, 1886–1937
David H. McConnell, Jr.
Avon Products, 1937–1944
James H. McGraw
McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1899–1928
Harold W. McGraw, Jr.
McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1974–1983
Ward Melville
Melville Corporation, 1922–1963
George W. Merck
Merck & Company, 1925–1955
Roger Milliken
Milliken & Company, 1947–Present
Ambrose Monell
International Nickel Corporation, 1902–1917
John P. Morgan, Jr.
J. P. Morgan and Company, 1913–1935
Charles G. Mortimer
General Foods Corporation, 1954–1965
J. Richard Munro
Time Warner, 1980–1990
Thomas S. Murphy
Capital Cities/ABC, 1966–1990
Conde M. Nast
Conde Nast Publications, 1907–1942
Samuel I. Newhouse
Newhouse Publishing, 1921–1979
William H. Nichols
General Chemical Corporation, 1899–1920
Jean Nidetch
Weight Watchers International, 1963–1978
Edward J. Noble
Life Savers, 1913–1938
Lucio A. Noto
Mobil Corporation, 1994–1999
Warren H. Phillips
Dow Jones & Company, 1975–1990
Robert A. Pinkerton II
Pinkerton's, 1930–1966
Generoso P. Pope, Jr.
National Enquirer, 1952–1988
Ernesta G. Procope
E. G. Bowman, 1953–Present
James H. Rand, Jr.
Remington-Rand Company, 1925–1955
William B. Rayburn
Snap-On, 1984–1988
Robert E. Rich
Rich Products Corporation, 1945–1978
Leonard S. Riggio
Barnes & Noble, 1965–2002
David Rockefeller
Chase Manhattan Bank, 1969–1980
John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
Standard Oil of New Jersey, 1863–1912
Steven J. Ross
Warner Communications, 1962–1992
Joseph P. Routh
Pittston Company, 1939–1976
Margaret F. Rudkin
Pepperidge Farm, 1937–1960
Walter E. Sachs
Goldman, Sachs and Company, 1928–1959
Dorothy Schiff
New York Post, 1943–1976
Howard Schultz
Starbucks Corporation, 1987–2000
Barry Schwartz
Calvin Klein, 1968–Present
Edward I. Scott
Scott Tissue Company, 1879–1921
John R. Sculley
Apple Computer, 1983–1993
Clarence W. Seamans
Union Typewriter Company, 1893–1910
Robert B. Shetterly
Clorox Company, 1969–1980
Russell Simmons
Def Jam Records / Rush Communications, 1983–Present
Elwyn L. Smith
Smith-Corona-Marchant Corporation, 1951–1960
Hurlburt W. Smith
Smith-Corona (L. C.) Typewriter Company, 1924–1933
Elmer A. Sperry
Sperry Gyroscope Company, 1910–1929
Charles H. Steinway
Steinway and Sons, 1896–1919
Henry Z. Steinway
Steinway and Sons, 1957–1980
Theodore E. Steinway
Steinway and Sons, 1919–1957
David J. Stern
National Basketball Association, 1984–Present
Jack I. Straus
Macy (R. H.) and Company, 1940–1956
Jesse I. Straus
Macy (R. H.) and Company, 1919–1933
Seth E. Thomas, Jr.
Seth Thomas Clock Company, 1919–1931
Laurence A. Tisch
Loew's, 1961–1999
Donald J. Trump
Trump Organization, 1975–Present
Daniel P. Tully
Merrill Lynch & Company, 1993–1997
Guy W. Vaughan
Curtiss-Wright Aircraft Company, 1935–1949
Linda J. Wachner
Warnaco, 1986–Present
Henry G. Walter, Jr.
International Flavors & Fragrances, 1962–1985
J. Basil Ward
Addressograph-Multigraph Corporation, 1952–1966
Thomas J. Watson, Sr.
IBM, 1914–1955
Sanford I. Weill
Travelers Group/CitiGroup, 1986–2003
Jann S. Wenner
Rolling Stone Magazine, 1967–Present
George Westinghouse
Westinghouse Electric Company, 1885–1911
Walter H. Wheeler, Jr.
Pitney-Bowes, 1938–1971
Charles Edward Wilson
General Electric Company, 1940–1950
Joseph C. Wilson II
Xerox Corporation, 1946–1971
Charles D. Wiman
Deere & Company, 1928–1955
Charles S. Woolworth
Woolworth (F. W.) and Company, 1919–1944
Frank W. Woolworth
Woolworth (F. W.) and Company, 1879–1919
Alan L. Wurtzel
Circuit City Stores, 1973–1986
Alfred M. Zeien
Gillette Company, 1991–1999
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THE 20th CENTURY ZEITGEIST

Six contextual factors deeply influenced the opportunities available to 20th century business leaders:

  • Demographics
  • Technology
  • Social Mores
  • Government
  • Labor
  • Global

the 20th Century Zeitgeist

Demographics
  • Demographics
  • Technology
  • Social Mores
  • Government Intervention
  • Labor
  • Global Events
Influence: High
190019

8.8 million immigrants arrive throughout decade

Cities expand

Population grows from 76 to 92 million

Rural Free Delivery routes added

Influence: Medium
10191019

Anti-immigration sentiment peaks during WWI

Great Migration begins as African-Americans relocate from rural South to northern cities

Influence: Medium-High
20192019

Population of urban centers overtakes that of rural communities

Tight immigration restrictions

Increase in divorce rates

Influence: Medium-Low
30193019

Westward migration of midwestern farmers and laborers for employment and better climate

Massive dust storms uproot millions

Smallest ten-year increase in population: 123-132 million

Influence: Medium-High
40194019

Baby boom begins

Suburbs start to form

Influence: High
50195019

Medical advances extend life expectancy

More people now live in suburbs than cities

Population soars to 179 million

largest ten-year increase

Influence: High
60196019

Baby boom tapers off

Emigration from Asia and Latin America surges

Influence: Medium-High
70197019

Urban blight

Rust Belt

Influence: Medium-High
80198019

Population migrates to West and Southwest

Influence: High
901990

Immigration tops 9 million (largest number since first decade)

Baby boomers age

Hispanics become fastest-growing minority

Population grows from 250 million to 281 million

Influence: Medium-High
190019

Model T

Plastic

Safety razor

Widespread use of steam engine, electricity, and openhearth furnace allows businesses to expand nationwide

Influence: Medium
10191019

First widespread use of auto assembly line

Self-starter increases popularity of automobile

Influence: Medium-High
20192019

KDKA, first radio station

First talking movie,

Influence: Medium
30193019

Advances in aviation

Nylon

Fiberglass

Instant photography

Air-conditioning begins to realize commercial potential

Influence: High
40194019

Planes and ships built in less than a day for the war effort

Atomic bomb

ENIAC computer

Penicillin used extensively to treat soldiers' infections

Synthetic rubberx

Influence: High
50195019

Television sales expand dramatically

Transistors used in portable radios and calculators

Influence: Medium-High
60196019

Man walks on the moon

Color TV market grows

Microchips expand possibilities in electronics industry

Integrated circuit boards replace transistor technology

First ATM installed

Influence: Medium
70197019

Beginning of biotech industry

Fiber-optic wire

Pong (first video game)

UPC bar code

Supercomputer

Influence: Medium-Low
80198019

Software industry booms

PC use expands in scale and scope

CAD/CAM revolutionizes manufacturing

Space shuttle

Influence: Medium-High
901990

Boom in connectivity

Cloning, stem cell research

DVDs

Influence: Medium
190019

Progressivism

The Jungle sparks food and work safety movement

Influence: Low
10191019

Sedition Act

Prohibition begins

Red Scare

Race riots

Influence: Medium-High
20192019

Social divisions arise between rural and urban areas

Women's suffrage

Harlem Renaissance

Rampant bootlegging and organized crime

Influence: Medium
30193019

Escapism in radio serials

Prohibition repealed

Golden age of movies

Influence: Medium-Low
40194019

Patriotism soars

GI Bill

Influence: Medium-Low
50195019

Social conformity

McCarthyism

Membership in organized religion soars

Brown v. Board of Education desegregated public schools>

Influence: Medium-High
60196019

Civil rights movement gain strength

Antiwar sentiment divides electorate

FDA approves oral contraceptive pill

Influence: High
70197019

National Organization for Women mobilizes for Equal Rights Amendment

Roe v. Wade legalizes abortion

Social discord continues over Vietnam War and civil rights

Watergate scandal undermines faith in authority

Influence: Medium-Low
80198019

Moral Majority

"Me" generation

Focus on training and fitness

Income gap widens dramatically

AIDS

Influence: High
901990

Internet "irrational exuberance"

Antigovernment sentiment: Waco standoff; Oklahoma City bombing

Influence: Medium-Low
190019

First significant enforcement of Sherman Antitrust Act

Pure Food and Drug Act; breakup of beef trust

Excise Tax imposed on corporations

Tariff Act forces corporations to open their books for government inspection

Influence: High
10191019

Breakup of Standard Oil and American Tobacco

Clayton Antitrust Act

Federal Reserve Act

First Federal-Aid Highway Act

Federal Trade Commission established

Personal income tax reinstituted

Influence: Low
20192019

U.S. Steel and Alcoa withstand antitrust accusations

Personal and corporate tax rates cut

Airmail service starts

Influence: High
30193019

The New Deal

Commercial and investment banking separated

Reconstruction Finance Corp. created to combat bank and business failures

Introduction of Federal Deposit Insurance

SEC established

Federal regulations prohibit false advertising

Influence: Low
40194019

Military spending explodes

Graduated income tax, Victory Tax adopted to fund war effort

Rationing

Influence: Medium-Low
50195019

Military spending shifts to nuclear deterrents

Small Business Administration created

Influence: Medium
60196019

Great Society

Consumer and environmental protection movements strengthen

Vehicle Safety Act and Highway Safety Act

Closing merger loophole opens door for conglomerate business model

Influence: Medium-High
70197019

Deregulation of oil and airline industries

New energy policies and programs

Stagflation cripples economy

Environmental protection weakened

Price controls

Influence: Low
80198019

Reaganomics

Heavy defense and deficit spending

Savings and Loan bailout

Chrysler bailout

Breakup of AT&T

Influence: Medium-Low
901990

Family and Medical Leave Act

Americans with Disabilities Act

Welfare reform

Antitrust action initiated against Microsoft

Influence: Medium-Low
190019

Fewer than 500,000 union members

Department of Commerce and Labor created

Influence: Medium
10191019

Ford doubles factory wages and shortens workday

Labor Secretary position created

Worker shortage: Unions double membership and increase wages

Influence: Medium-Low
20192019

Union membership declines sharply

Minimum wage and maximum working hour legislation overturned

Influence: High
30193019

Unemployment peaks at 25%

Unions surge, adding 7 million members in a single year

Sit-down strikes at GM and other auto makers

Government work programs launched: CCC, PWA, WPA

CIO union created

NLRB created

Fair Labor Standards Act sets minimum wage

Influence: Low
40194019

Rosie the Riveter

Postwar strikes

Productivity surge

Government backlash against postwar union movement

Influence: Medium
50195019

The Organization Man

Union membership peaks

The AFL merges with the CIO: 15 million members

Influence: Medium-High
60196019

Factory automation slashes jobs

Service industry outpaces growth in manufacturing

Civil Rights Act

Equal Pay Act

Unions concentrated in big businesses

Formation of United Farm Workers union

Influence: Medium
70197019

Wage controls

OSHA created

Service economy expands

Women enter the workforce in large numbers

Influence: Medium-Low
80198019

Air traffic controllers' union dismantled

Union representation drops

Information technology redistributes job functions

Influence: Low
901990

Reengineering

Record high employment

Service sector outpaces manufacturing in new job creation

Influence: Low
190019

U.S. begins construction of Panama Canal

Influence: High
10191019

War Industries Board coordinates activities among labor, government, and business for WWI

Cost-plus contracts introduced

Protectionist tariffs reduced

Influence: Medium-Low
20192019

Isolationism

U.S. restores high tariffs

U.S. pushes for debt recovery

Allied nations seek war reparations from Axis powers

Influence: Medium-Low
30193019

Increased tariff protection through Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act

Continued isolationism

Influence: High
40194019

War Production Board readies nation for WWII

U.S. becomes a global power

Creation of IMF and World Bank

Marshall Plan

Cold war begins

Influence: Medium-High
50195019

Cold war escalates

Korean War forces another mobilization effort

Influence: High
60196019

Cold war continues to build

Bay of Pigs invasion; Cuban Missile Crisis

Vietnam War escalates

Influence: Medium-High
70197019

OPEC oil crisis

Vietnam War ends

Iran hostage crisis

Imports outpace exports

Influence: Medium-High
80198019

Berlin wall falls

End of cold war

Iran-Contra Affair

Influence: High
901990

USSR dismantled; ethnic conflicts exposed

Gulf War: real-time TV coverage

Asian financial crisis

NAFTA enacted

European Union forms

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