DeLorean

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Since the sixties when he was known as the brilliant but brash young executive at General Motors, John Zachary DeLorean has been one of the most controversial public features in the United States and, of recent years, the world.  His 6'4" Lincolnesque figure and his striking appearance have made him one of the most photographed and recognizable celebrities outside of Hollywood.  He has only to set foot his front door to make headlines.

Admirers see DeLorean as the man who stood alone against the corporate rulers on the Fourteenth Floor during his tumultuous days at GM, the man who, against all the odds, built his own auto factory in Northern Ireland.  Detractors have dubbed DeLorean a playboy, an auto baron, a man of masks, a "Gatsby," an American villain - the designations are endless.

Despite all this exposure, the public figure has proved to be a very private man.  And whether they praise or condemn, people all ultimately ask the same question: Who is the real John DeLorean?

The furor surrounding his decision to build his own sports car paled in October 1982 when headlines rocked the world and topped every other outrageous ever made about the man: John Z. DeLorean, captain of a sinking ship, had been arrested and accused of trafficking in cocaine!

DeLorean was silent during his arrest and subsequent trial.  Since his acquittal on all charges and the breakup of his marriage to Christine Ferrare, he has said little, beyond a few interviews about his conversion to Christianity and some of his immediate views on the government case.

Now, for the first time, John Z. DeLorean speaks out about the man behind the headlines.  Many have attempted to tell his story; now it's his turn.

 - the forces in his life that have inspired his drive for individualism and his paradoxical arrogance and shyness; his strong convictions about everything from racial prejudice to front wheel drive

 - highlights of his record-setting years as head of Pontiac and Chevrolet - the men who inspired him and the men who angered him

 - why he married the women he did and what those relationships meant in his life, particularly his years with Christina Ferrare

 - why and how he founded DeLorean Motor Company

 - the early warning signs of disaster and why he did not see or heed them

 - his fanatic efforts to save his beleaguered company

 - his compulsive dependency on an occult spiritualist

 - his inside view of the scenario that set him up for a drug arrest

 - his personal encounter with God in his prison cell

 - the compelling courtroom drama that saw him acquitted on all charges in the frame-up of the decade

Finally, in revealing the private man behind the public mask, John DeLorean speaks of the decision that may raise more questions about him than any other: his decision to embrace the age-old faith that says a man must lose everything if he is to save his soul.

"The man writing this book is not the same man who left GM over a decade ago. . . . This is the true story of my reluctant journey from the pursuit of personal power and glory to the deepest meaning of life."

This page last modified on Tuesday, April 08, 2008