Robert Dean Nesen (January 22, 1918 – November 14, 2005) was an American car dealer and diplomat who served as the U.S.

Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Financial Management and Comptroller) The assistant secretary of the navy (financial management and comptroller) (abbreviated ASN FM) is a civilian office of the United States Department of the Navy. The assistant secretary of the navy (financial management and comptroller) is respo ...

from 1972 to 1974 and as

United States Ambassador to Australia The position of United States Ambassador to Australia has existed since 1940. Australia–United States relations, U.S.–Australian relations have been close throughout the history of Australia. Before World War II, Australia was closely aligne ...

from 1981 to 1985.

Biography

Robert D. Nesen was born January 22, 1918, in St. Louis, Michigan. He was educated at

Tri-State College Trine University is a private university in Angola, Indiana, and Fort Wayne, Indiana, with education centers in Detroit, Phoenix and Reston, Virginia. It was founded in 1884 and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. History "Tri-Sta ...

and the

Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute The Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute was an early professional trade school operated by the Curtiss-Wright corporation for aircraft maintenance training. Director Major C. C. Moseley was one of only three school directors selected across Americ ...

, receiving a B.S. in

Aeronautical Engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

in 1941. He worked for the Air-Research Corp. until 1942, when he joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

, serving in

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 ...

until 1946. Upon leaving the Navy, Nesen remained a member of the

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

, ultimately attaining the rank of Lieutenant Commander before retiring from the Navy Reserve in 1966. Upon leaving the Navy in 1946, he opened the Coast Aero Flying Service in

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California, United States. On California's Central Coast (California), Central Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the List of largest California cities by populati ...

. Nesen started in the automobile business a few year later, opening an

Oldsmobile Oldsmobile (formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors) was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it produc ...

car dealership A car dealership, or car dealer, is a business that sells new or used cars, at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. Car dealerships also often sell spare parts and automotive maintena ...

in Oxnard. The dealership added

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

in the mid-1950s and then in 1971, moved to a new facility in

Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, located in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles. Approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, it is named after the many oak trees pr ...

. The business continued to grow in what became known as the "Thousand Oaks Auto Mall" and took on many more franchises; from

Subaru is the automaker, automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate (company), conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the Automotive industry#By manufacturer, twenty-first largest aut ...

and

Hyundai Hyundai is a former South Korean industrial conglomerate ("''chaebol''"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Asan, a real estate construction ...

in the 1970s and 1980s to high-end exotic brands like

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

and

Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...

in the 1990s.

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

appointed Nesen to the California New Car Dealers Policy and Appeals Board, and Nesen was elected as that organization's first president. Reagan later appointed him to the

California State Board of Education The California State Board of Education is the governing and policy-making body of the California Department of Education. The State Board of Education sets K-12 education policy in the areas of standards, instructional materials, assessment, an ...

. Nesen was active in the Republican Party during this period and served as chairman, and then cochairman, of the California delegation to the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

. In 1970, he became a member of the Executive Committee of the National Review Board of the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

. In 1972,

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

nominated Nesen as

and Nesen subsequently served in this office from May 31, 1972, until May 15, 1974. President Reagan named Nesen

in 1981 and concurrently as Ambassador to the

Republic of Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...

, a post he held until 1985. In 1981 and 1987, there was press speculation that President Reagan would name Nesen

United States Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On Mar ...

, but this never happened.Bernard E. Trainor, "Lehman Resigning as Navy Secretary," ''New York Times'', Feb. 13, 1987.
/ref> In 1991, Nesen was inducted into 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 ...

. Nesen died in

, on November 14, 2005, at the age of 87.

References

External links

Profile at NNDB
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nesen, Robert D. 1918 births 2005 deaths United States Assistant Secretaries of the Navy Ambassadors of the United States to Australia People from St. Louis, Michigan Trine University alumni 20th-century American diplomats