Donald Wills Douglas Jr. (July 3, 1917 – October 3, 2004) was an American industrialist and sportsman who competed in the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held du ...

, the Transpacific Yacht Race, and in equestrian dressage competitions. He was the president of the

Douglas Aircraft Company The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and military, defense company based in Southern California. Founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr., it merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell D ...

, which his father, Donald Wills Douglas Sr. founded, from 1957 to 1967, when the company merged with

McDonnell Aircraft Corporation The McDonnell Aircraft Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer based in St. Louis, Missouri. The company was founded on July 6, 1939, by James Smith McDonnell, and was best known for its military fighters, including the F-4 Phantom II ...

. He was on the board of directors of Douglas Aircraft from 1953 until the merger, then on the board of

McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas Corporation was a major American Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own ...

from 1967 to 1989. He was involved in other enterprises, including the Capistrano Bank in Orange County, California, in early manufacturing robotics software, and in real estate partnerships. He studied mechanical engineering at Stanford University and completed his education at the Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute in Glendale, California.Boeing,
Executive Biography of Donald W. Douglas Jr.
/ref> In 1932 he was a crew member of the American boat ''Gallant'', which won the silver medal in the 6 metre class in the summer Olympics, held in Los Angeles, Calif. In 1943, he was appointed manager of flight test in the Douglas Aircraft Company. In World War II he supervised the flight testing of practically every type of aircraft built by Douglas at the time, including SBD Dauntless and

C-54 Skymaster The Douglas C-54 Skymaster is a four-engined transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. Like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain derived from the DC-3, the C-54 Skymaster was derived from a civilian ...

. Later, he was named director of the testing division. The

DC-6 The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, Douglas reworked it after the war to compete wi ...

and DC-7 airliners obtained type certification under his direction. In 1952, he and his brother Jim persuaded Ralph Larrabee, the owner of the 161-foot schooner ''Goodwill'', to enter it in the

Transpacific Yacht Race The Transpacific Yacht Race (Transpac) is a biennial offshore yacht race held in odd-numbered years starting off the Pt. Fermin buoy in San Pedro, California and ending off Diamond Head in Hawaii, a distance of around . In even-numbered years the ...

from Los Angeles to Honolulu. The conversion of the recreational yacht to a racer included the creation of twin 72-foot aluminum spinnaker poles at Douglas Aircraft Company. They were so long that Jim Douglas created pole ends that could be severed by means of explosive bolts from fighter jet ejector seats to drop the sail in an emergency. The crew numbered 47, including 30 sailors, a cook and seven stewards. The Douglas brothers had major roles in crew leadership, and Don served as the Sailing Master in the 1959 race. The ''Goodwill'' was the first to finish the 1953 race, as well as in 1959. He appeared on

Groucho Marx Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in films and vaudeville on television, radio, and the stage. He is considered one of America's greatest comed ...

television program "

You Bet Your Life ''You Bet Your Life'' is an American comedy quiz series that has aired on both radioBoy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

. In 1974, he founded the Douglas Museum and Library at the south side of the

Santa Monica Airport Santa Monica Airport (Santa Monica Municipal Airport) is a general aviation airport largely in Santa Monica, California, United States, in the Greater Los Angeles area. It opened on April 15, 1923, making it one of the United States' oldest a ...

. After his discussions with entrepreneur David G. Price, the museum was moved to the north side of the airport, and reopened as ''Museum of Flying'' in 1989. He served on the board of directors of

Hilton Hotels Hilton Hotels & Resorts (formerly known as Hilton Hotels) is a global brand of full-service hotels and resorts and the flagship brand of American multinational hospitality company Hilton Worldwide. The original company was founded by Conrad Hi ...

, and was a member of the Rancheros Visitadores, an equestrian club based in Santa Barbara, California.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Donald Wills Jr. 1917 births 2004 deaths American male sailors (sport) Olympic silver medalists for the United States in sailing Sailors at the 1932 Summer Olympics – 6 Metre American business executives Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics 20th-century American sportsmen