Word: avco
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Dates: during 1930-1939
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Major Lester Draper ("Bing") Seymour is the man E. L. Cord wanted in place of La Motte Cohu last spring. At that time Cord was not strong enough to have Seymour elected. But he did succeed in having President Cohu's undated resignation placed in care of Avco Board Chairman William Averell Harriman, just in case. For several weeks matters went smoothly, and one day - the story goes - when Cord, Cohu & Harriman were riding in a taxicab, Cord asked Banker Harriman for the resignation, tore it up. When hostilities reopened, he bitterly regretted his impulse...
...full-page newspaper advertisements Mr. Cord shouted that his accusations of extravagance, speculation, mismanagement, "illegal payments to officers.'' loss of 838,000,000 by the Avco management had gone unanswered. He denied Avco's charge that he had tried to force his Stinson planes upon the company; denied placing "spies" in Avco ranks; admitted losing money on his Century Air Lines (bought by Avco), pleaded that it was a five-month-old venture without benefit of airmail. He flayed the directorate for "railroading" important deals, told stockholders that "if we had not stopped the directors from making the [North American...
...Avco hired Publicists Edward L. Bernays and Bruno & Blythe to combat the Cord propagandists, P. P. Willis & Co. of Chicago, Doremus & Co. of Manhattan. But their replies were less heated. President La Motte Turck Cohu repeated his familiar objections to Mr. Cord. Avco was cannily waiting, hoping that the Cord faction would talk itself into trouble...
Then two of the breaks awaited by Avco occurred in quick succession. E. F. Hutton & Co., Cord supporters, published a booklet in which President Cohu's name appeared above an Avco balance sheet showing $20,000,000 losses since 1929. Mr. Cohu, who has been president for only six months, started a $1,000,000 libel suit. Also, Avco got and published a letter from President William Green of the A. F. of L. Excerpts: "We are thoroughly convinced that Mr. Cord is hostile to union labor. ... If [he] secures control . . . it will be the purpose...
Next day Cord's most potent proxy-committeeman, white-haired Speculator Frank Arthur Vanderlip ("The Grey Ghost of Wall Street"), called at the office of young Banker William Averell Harriman, who lately left Avco's chair (TIME, Oct. 31). Presently they summoned Avco's new Chairman Robert Lehman, President Cohu, and Cord's hard-bitten Vice President Lucius Manning. From noon until nearly midnight they argued, bartered. Then, on terms which will doubtless remain secret, they emerged with a truce: the Avco board shall be reduced from 35 to 15. Five will be chosen by the present regime (probably Harriman...