Eugene 'Gene' Bordinat Jr. (February 10, 1920 – August 11, 1987) was an American automobile designer and corporate executive.
He was noted as the outspoken Vice President of Styling and Chief Designer at
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...
in a career spanning more than three decades with the company and the tenure of five company presidents,
leaving "his imprint on more than 50 million cars."
Bordinat arrived at Ford as the 1949 line was under design, and ultimately guided the design of cars ranging from the
Lincoln Continental (1958-1960),
Falcon
Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...
,
Mustang
The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish conquistadors. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticate ...
,
Maverick
Maverick or Maveric may refer to:
History
* Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick
Aviation
* AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design
* General Aviation Design Bureau T-32 M ...
,
Pinto
Pinto is a Portuguese, Spanish, Jewish (Sephardic), and Italian surname. It is a high-frequency surname in all Portuguese-speaking countries and is also widely present in Spanish-speaking countries, Italy, India (especially in Mangalore, Karnata ...
and the
Lincoln Continental Mark V
The Continental Mark V is a Personal luxury car, personal luxury coupe marketed in North America by the Lincoln Motor Company, Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company for model years 1977–1979. It was the third generation of the Lincoln Mark se ...
. He was noted for often correcting the historical record on the original Mustang noting that
Lee Iacocca
Lido Anthony "Lee" Iacocca ( ; October 15, 1924 – July 2, 2019) was an American automobile executive who developed the Ford Mustang, Lincoln Continental Mark III, and Ford Pinto cars while at the Ford Motor Company in the 1960s, and then reviv ...
was not the "Father of the Mustang," that the Mustang design was seven months complete
when Iacocca first saw it.
On Bordinat's death in 1987, noted automotive journalist Paul Lienert described him as "urbane and polished" with a "droll wit and near photographic memory", and a "masterful manipulator, of the press, of his own designers, even of his superiors."
Bordinat himself once said "beauty is a good 10-day sales report" and (of his work in the 1950s) "people wanted chrome, and we slathered them with it. Good taste has nothing to do with it whatsoever."
Background
Bordinat (pronounced bor-di-nay') was born on 10 February 1920 in Toledo, Ohio,
to Maud Agnes Hogan Bordinat (1896–1987) and Eugene Bordinat (1891–1985), who had been an engeering graduate of
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...
and plant engineer for
Willys-Overland
Willys (pronounced , "Willis")
was a brand name used by Willys–Overland Motors, an American automobile company, founded by John North Willys. It was best known for its design and production of World War II–era military jeeps (MBs), Willys ...
.
Bordinat attended high school in the Detroit Area, and studied at the
Cranbrook Academy of Art
The Cranbrook Academy of Art, a graduate school for architecture, art, and design, was founded by George Gough Booth and Ellen Scripps Booth in 1932. It is the art school of the Cranbrook Educational Community. Located in Bloomfield Hills, Mi ...
and the
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
as an art major.
He was a member of the
Industrial Designers Society of America
The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is a membership-based not-for-profit organization that promotes the practice and education of industrial design.
The organization was formally established in 1965 by the collaborative merger of t ...
from its founding in 1965, and ultimately a fellow. He received the
Automotive Hall of Fame
The Automotive Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum honoring influential figures in the history of the automotive industry. Located in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, US. The Hall of Fame is part of the MotorCities National Herita ...
Distinguished Service Citation Award in 1977 and an honorary degree from the Art Center of Los Angeles.
In his retirement he wrote a manuscript for a light-hearted autobiography titled ''My Days at the Court of Henry II'', with an inside view to his years at Ford and specifically with
Henry Ford II
Henry Ford II (September 4, 1917 – September 29, 1987), commonly known as Hank the Deuce, was an American businessman in the automotive industry. He was the oldest son of Edsel Ford I and oldest grandson of Henry Ford. He served as president ...
.
Though it had been finished and accepted, the book was under editing at the time of his death to accommodate a more "anti-
Iacocca slant" as suggested by the publisher, of which Bordinat approved. Although his widow had intended to finish his autobiography, it was never published.
Bordinat died suddenly of an undiagnosed lung ailment at the
Henry Ford Hospital
Henry Ford Hospital (HFH) is an 877-bed tertiary care hospital, education and research complex at the western edge of the New Center, Detroit, New Center area in Detroit, Michigan. The flagship facility for the Henry Ford Health System, it wa ...
on August 11, 1987, survived by two brothers, Philip Bordinat (1922–2007) and Hugh David Bordinat (1929–2021), and his wife Teresa Simmons Bourdinat. Bordinat had been previously married to Eleanor Louis Merritt Bordinant (1918–1976) with whom he had one daughter, Janice Eleanore Bordinat Delaney. He was subsequently married to Eldegard L. Bordinat (died 1983).
Career
In 1939, at the end of his Freshman year at the University of Michigan, Bordinat took a summer position with General Motors. He was one of 33 students chosen to join GM's Art and Colour Section under
Harley Earl
Harley Jarvis Earl (November 22, 1893 – April 10, 1969) was an American Automotive design, automotive designer and business executive. He was the initial designated head of design at General Motors, later becoming vice president, the first ...
.
In a 1984 interview, Bordinat related the story of his joining General Motors:
::"''In 1936, I went to the University of Michigan, and after being there for two years --a little over two years--, I was informed of a school that was starting at General Motors. They were having difficulty in getting fellows, then known as stylists, because there were very few schools that were teaching any of that kind of work --even industrial design--, which bears on auto design. As a result, they decided to start this school which was the brain child of Harley Earl, who was then the Vice-President of the Styling Section at General Motors and was working directly for
hairmanAlfred P. Sloan at the time. The school was unusual in a sense. They selected thirty-three people from throughout the country. They had to submit samples and references and the normal things, and I was fortunate to be one of the thirty-three people. The group was unusual in that nobody had any experience in automobile design, but they had demonstrated a love for cars, were able to put together their concepts of cars for their samples and brought, of course, their other samples which were in the fields that they'd been in, such as shoe design, industrial design, dress design.''"
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
he served as a supervisor at
Fisher Body
Fisher Body was an automobile coachbuilder founded as the Fisher Body Company by Frederic and Charles Fisher in 1908 in Detroit, Michigan when they absorbed a fledgling autobody maker. By 1916 the concern had grown into one of the world's large ...
for
tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...
production. He later served in the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
. Bordinat briefly returned to work at GM as a senior stylist after the war.
Bordinat joined Ford in 1947. He supervised styling at the
Lincoln-Mercury
Mercury was a brand of medium-priced automobiles that was produced by American manufacturer Ford Motor Company between the 1939 and 2011 motor years. Created by Edsel Ford in 1938, Mercury was established to bridge the gap between the Ford and ...
division, directing many automotive designs. Bordinat was promoted to vice president for styling and a chief designer in 1961, as the successor to
George W. Walker. At his peak, Bordinat supervised Ford's annual $30 Million design budget, with a discretionary budget of $12 Million.
Less than a year after suffering a heart attack, Bordinat took a leave of absence at 60 per cent pay following his 60th birthday in February 1980.
As the longest-tenured chief stylist in the company's history, he fully retired in 1985.
Ford subsequently restructured its design studio, announcing
Jack Telnack
Jack Telnack (born John J. Telnack in 1937) is the former global Vice President of Design of the Ford Motor Company from 1980 to 1997. He is best known for his work with cars like the 1979 Ford Mustang (Ford Mustang (third generation), third gene ...
would assume major design responsibilities.
Bordinat Cobra
In the early 1960s Bordinat worked with
McKinley Thompson, the first major African-American car designer at Ford, to create an alternate version of one of its second generation of "X Cars," its most futuristic concepts, the Cougar II coupe.
In this case the alternative would be sporty open-top sports car, alternatively called the ''XD Cobra'' or the ''
Bordinat Cobra:'' intended as a possible update to the two-seat
Shelby Cobra
The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a List of Ford engines#8 Cylinder, Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the Uni ...
. presented the concept at the 1963
Detroit Auto Show
The Detroit Auto Show, formerly known as the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), is an annual auto show held in Detroit, Michigan. Hosted at Huntington Place (formerly Cobo Center) since 1965, it is among the largest auto shows in ...
as well as the
1964 New York World's Fair
The 1964 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair) was an world's fair, international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, United States. The fair included exhibitions, activ ...
, and reportedly allowed Bordinat to use the two-seater as his personal car for more than a year.
The fate of the Bordinat Cobra and Cougar II coupe remained largely unknown, until 2004, when a retired Ford designer, Jeff Burgy, tracked down their whereabouts, in storage at the
Detroit Historical Museum
The Detroit Historical Museum is located at 5401 Woodward Avenue in the city's Cultural Center Historic District in Midtown Detroit. It chronicles the history of the Detroit area from cobblestone streets, 19th century stores, the auto assembl ...
.
References
Notes
*
Archived New York Times obituary retrieved July 24, 2008
IDSA page on Eugene Bordinat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bordinat, Eugene
1920 births
1987 deaths
Ford executives
Cranbrook Academy of Art alumni
University of Michigan alumni
People in the automobile industry
General Motors people
General Motors designers
American automobile designers
Ford people
Ford designers
United States Army Air Forces soldiers
United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II