The People's Tycoon: Henry Ford and the American Century

How a Michigan farm boy became the richest man in America is a classic, almost mythic tale, but never before has Henry Ford’s outsized genius been brought to life so vividly as it is in this engaging and superbly researched biography.

The real Henry Ford was a tangle of contradictions. He set off the consumer revolution by producing a car affordable to the masses, all the while lamenting the moral toll exacted by consumerism. He believed in giving his workers a living wage, though he was entirely opposed to union labor. He had a warm and loving relationship with his wife, but sired a son with another woman. A rabid anti-Semite, he nonetheless embraced African American workers in the era of Jim Crow.

Uncovering the man behind the myth, situating his achievements and their attendant controversies firmly within the context of early twentieth-century America, Watts has given us a comprehensive, illuminating, and fascinating biography of one of America’s first mass-culture celebrities.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

A definitive biography of the controversial entrepreneur who transformed the world of American business explores the dramatic contradictions of Henry Ford's life, providing a revealing study of the man behind the myths and assessing his accomplishments within the context of early twentieth-century America. By the author of The Magic Kingdom. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

Steven Watts is a professor of history at University of Missouri and the author of The Magic Kingdom: Walt Disney and the American Way of Life.

PROLOGUE: The Legend of Henry Ford

PART ONE: The Road to Fame

One—Farm Boy

Two—Machinist

Three—Inventor

Four—Businessman

Five—Celebrity

Six—Entrepreneur

PART TWO: The Miracle Maker

Seven—Consumer

Eight—Producer

Nine—Folk Hero

Ten—Reformer

Eleven—Victorian

Twelve—Politician

PART THREE: The Flivver King

Thirteen—Legend

Fourteen—Visionary

Fifteen—Moralist

Sixteen—Positive Thinker

Seventeen—Emperor

Eighteen—Father

Nineteen—Bigot

PART FOUR: The Long Twilight

Twenty—Antiquarian

Twenty-one—Individualist

Twenty-two—Despot

Twenty-three—Dabbler

Twenty-four—Educator

Twenty-five—Figurehead

EPILOGUE: The Sage of Dearborn

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index

From the Hardcover edition.