Son of Roy Chapin, Sr. who was one of the original founders of the Hudson Motor Company. Chairman of American Motors from 1967 to 1977.
Massachusetts Death Index
Name: Roy D Chapin
Certificate: 041468
Death Place: Nantucket
Death Date: 5 Aug 2001
Birth Place: Michigan
Birth Date: 21 Sep 1915
Spouse: Loise Baldwin
OBITUARY
Roy D. Chapin Jr., 85; Ran American Motors
By KEITH BRADSHER
Published: August 7, 2001
DETROIT, Aug. 6— Roy D. Chapin Jr., a former chairman and chief executive of the American Motors Corporation who oversaw the company's purchase of the Jeep Corporation in 1970, died on Sunday of heart failure at his summer home in Nantucket, Mass., his son, William R. Chapin, said. He was 85.
Mr. Chapin ran American Motors from 1967 until 1977. Despite being dwarfed by General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler, American Motors prospered during his early years in charge, as its international operations expanded and the sales of its compact cars benefited from rising oil prices.
When American Motors bought the struggling Jeep operations from Kaiser Industries for $75 million, some derided the purchase as a costly dalliance in the obscure market for sport utility vehicles at a time when American Motors needed to invest large sums to update its aging lineup of cars. But the Jeep operation improved steadily through the 1970's.
American Motors was crippled in the mid-1970's by a surge of imported cars from Japan that were less expensive and even more fuel-efficient than American Motors' offerings. Renault began investing in American Motors in 1979 and eventually took control of the ailing company before selling it to Chrysler in 1987. One of the reasons Chrysler was attracted to American Motors was the Jeep brand.
William R. Chapin said today that when his father looked back over his career, he was proudest of his involvement with Jeep.
Roy Chapin was considering the idea of buying Jeep when he had lunch in California with Henry J. Kaiser, the industrialist who owned Jeep, and who turned out to be interested in selling, Mr. Chapin's son said. Robert Casey, the transportation curator at the Henry Ford Museum, said that American Motors' ownership of the Jeep brand was crucial to the company's survival until 1987. "That legacy was what kept American Motors together instead of being sold off as factories and other pieces," he said.
While Renault kept American Motors virtually intact as an American subsidiary, Chrysler combined most of its design, engineering and manufacturing operations with its own. William Chapin said his father had supported Renault's investments in American Motors but had been dismayed by the sale to Chrysler.
"That was, frankly, a real disappointment for my father," said William Chapin, who worked as a marketer for American Motors in Detroit and Paris until 1986.
Jeep has changed corporate owners again since the Chrysler purchase. Daimler-Benz of Germany bought Chrysler in 1998 to form what is now DaimlerChrysler.
Back in an era when personal relationships were still vital to securing financing from Wall Street, Roy Chapin was a well-known industrialist who inspired great confidence among the leading financiers of his day, who provided the continued loans and other investments needed to keep American Motors solvent.
"He was a blueblood, and money attracts money," said Gerald C. Meyers, who was Mr. Chapin's successor as chairman and chief executive of American Motors. "He'd go to Wall Street and they loved him -- it was all relationships."
Mr. Chapin's father was one of the founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company, which Roy Chapin Jr. joined in 1938 soon after graduating with honors from Yale University. After Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors, Mr. Chapin served as treasurer, vice president and then executive vice president before becoming chief executive and chairman in January 1967. When Mr. Meyers resigned in early 1982 after selling control to Renault, Mr. Chapin was briefly chairman of an executive committee of the American Motors board.
Mr. Chapin's marriage to Ruth Mary Ruxton ended in divorce; she died in 1995. He is survived by his second wife, Loise Chapin of Geyserville, Calif., Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., and Nantucket.
In addition to William Chapin, of Grosse Pointe, Mich., Mr. Chapin is survived by two sons, Roy D. Chapin III of North Palm Beach, Fla., and Christopher K. Chapin of Washington; a daughter, Penny Chapin de Estrada of Buenos Aires; a stepson, Robert L. Wickser Jr. of San Francisco; three stepdaughters, Alexandra Balantine of Brewster, N.Y., Lita Toland of New Canaan, Conn., and Hope Wickser of North Salem, N.Y.; two brothers, John C. Chapin of Washington and Daniel Chapin of Danville, Calif.; two sisters, Joan C. Hutton of Locust Valley, N.Y., and Marian C. Higbie of Grosse Pointe Farms; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Massachusetts Death Index
Name: Roy D Chapin
Certificate: 041468
Death Place: Nantucket
Death Date: 5 Aug 2001
Birth Place: Michigan
Birth Date: 21 Sep 1915
Spouse: Loise Baldwin
OBITUARY
Roy D. Chapin Jr., 85; Ran American Motors
By KEITH BRADSHER
Published: August 7, 2001
DETROIT, Aug. 6— Roy D. Chapin Jr., a former chairman and chief executive of the American Motors Corporation who oversaw the company's purchase of the Jeep Corporation in 1970, died on Sunday of heart failure at his summer home in Nantucket, Mass., his son, William R. Chapin, said. He was 85.
Mr. Chapin ran American Motors from 1967 until 1977. Despite being dwarfed by General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler, American Motors prospered during his early years in charge, as its international operations expanded and the sales of its compact cars benefited from rising oil prices.
When American Motors bought the struggling Jeep operations from Kaiser Industries for $75 million, some derided the purchase as a costly dalliance in the obscure market for sport utility vehicles at a time when American Motors needed to invest large sums to update its aging lineup of cars. But the Jeep operation improved steadily through the 1970's.
American Motors was crippled in the mid-1970's by a surge of imported cars from Japan that were less expensive and even more fuel-efficient than American Motors' offerings. Renault began investing in American Motors in 1979 and eventually took control of the ailing company before selling it to Chrysler in 1987. One of the reasons Chrysler was attracted to American Motors was the Jeep brand.
William R. Chapin said today that when his father looked back over his career, he was proudest of his involvement with Jeep.
Roy Chapin was considering the idea of buying Jeep when he had lunch in California with Henry J. Kaiser, the industrialist who owned Jeep, and who turned out to be interested in selling, Mr. Chapin's son said. Robert Casey, the transportation curator at the Henry Ford Museum, said that American Motors' ownership of the Jeep brand was crucial to the company's survival until 1987. "That legacy was what kept American Motors together instead of being sold off as factories and other pieces," he said.
While Renault kept American Motors virtually intact as an American subsidiary, Chrysler combined most of its design, engineering and manufacturing operations with its own. William Chapin said his father had supported Renault's investments in American Motors but had been dismayed by the sale to Chrysler.
"That was, frankly, a real disappointment for my father," said William Chapin, who worked as a marketer for American Motors in Detroit and Paris until 1986.
Jeep has changed corporate owners again since the Chrysler purchase. Daimler-Benz of Germany bought Chrysler in 1998 to form what is now DaimlerChrysler.
Back in an era when personal relationships were still vital to securing financing from Wall Street, Roy Chapin was a well-known industrialist who inspired great confidence among the leading financiers of his day, who provided the continued loans and other investments needed to keep American Motors solvent.
"He was a blueblood, and money attracts money," said Gerald C. Meyers, who was Mr. Chapin's successor as chairman and chief executive of American Motors. "He'd go to Wall Street and they loved him -- it was all relationships."
Mr. Chapin's father was one of the founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company, which Roy Chapin Jr. joined in 1938 soon after graduating with honors from Yale University. After Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors, Mr. Chapin served as treasurer, vice president and then executive vice president before becoming chief executive and chairman in January 1967. When Mr. Meyers resigned in early 1982 after selling control to Renault, Mr. Chapin was briefly chairman of an executive committee of the American Motors board.
Mr. Chapin's marriage to Ruth Mary Ruxton ended in divorce; she died in 1995. He is survived by his second wife, Loise Chapin of Geyserville, Calif., Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., and Nantucket.
In addition to William Chapin, of Grosse Pointe, Mich., Mr. Chapin is survived by two sons, Roy D. Chapin III of North Palm Beach, Fla., and Christopher K. Chapin of Washington; a daughter, Penny Chapin de Estrada of Buenos Aires; a stepson, Robert L. Wickser Jr. of San Francisco; three stepdaughters, Alexandra Balantine of Brewster, N.Y., Lita Toland of New Canaan, Conn., and Hope Wickser of North Salem, N.Y.; two brothers, John C. Chapin of Washington and Daniel Chapin of Danville, Calif.; two sisters, Joan C. Hutton of Locust Valley, N.Y., and Marian C. Higbie of Grosse Pointe Farms; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Son of Roy Chapin, Sr. who was one of the original founders of the Hudson Motor Company. Chairman of American Motors from 1967 to 1977.
Massachusetts Death Index
Name: Roy D Chapin
Certificate: 041468
Death Place: Nantucket
Death Date: 5 Aug 2001
Birth Place: Michigan
Birth Date: 21 Sep 1915
Spouse: Loise Baldwin
OBITUARY
Roy D. Chapin Jr., 85; Ran American Motors
By KEITH BRADSHER
Published: August 7, 2001
DETROIT, Aug. 6— Roy D. Chapin Jr., a former chairman and chief executive of the American Motors Corporation who oversaw the company's purchase of the Jeep Corporation in 1970, died on Sunday of heart failure at his summer home in Nantucket, Mass., his son, William R. Chapin, said. He was 85.
Mr. Chapin ran American Motors from 1967 until 1977. Despite being dwarfed by General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler, American Motors prospered during his early years in charge, as its international operations expanded and the sales of its compact cars benefited from rising oil prices.
When American Motors bought the struggling Jeep operations from Kaiser Industries for $75 million, some derided the purchase as a costly dalliance in the obscure market for sport utility vehicles at a time when American Motors needed to invest large sums to update its aging lineup of cars. But the Jeep operation improved steadily through the 1970's.
American Motors was crippled in the mid-1970's by a surge of imported cars from Japan that were less expensive and even more fuel-efficient than American Motors' offerings. Renault began investing in American Motors in 1979 and eventually took control of the ailing company before selling it to Chrysler in 1987. One of the reasons Chrysler was attracted to American Motors was the Jeep brand.
William R. Chapin said today that when his father looked back over his career, he was proudest of his involvement with Jeep.
Roy Chapin was considering the idea of buying Jeep when he had lunch in California with Henry J. Kaiser, the industrialist who owned Jeep, and who turned out to be interested in selling, Mr. Chapin's son said. Robert Casey, the transportation curator at the Henry Ford Museum, said that American Motors' ownership of the Jeep brand was crucial to the company's survival until 1987. "That legacy was what kept American Motors together instead of being sold off as factories and other pieces," he said.
While Renault kept American Motors virtually intact as an American subsidiary, Chrysler combined most of its design, engineering and manufacturing operations with its own. William Chapin said his father had supported Renault's investments in American Motors but had been dismayed by the sale to Chrysler.
"That was, frankly, a real disappointment for my father," said William Chapin, who worked as a marketer for American Motors in Detroit and Paris until 1986.
Jeep has changed corporate owners again since the Chrysler purchase. Daimler-Benz of Germany bought Chrysler in 1998 to form what is now DaimlerChrysler.
Back in an era when personal relationships were still vital to securing financing from Wall Street, Roy Chapin was a well-known industrialist who inspired great confidence among the leading financiers of his day, who provided the continued loans and other investments needed to keep American Motors solvent.
"He was a blueblood, and money attracts money," said Gerald C. Meyers, who was Mr. Chapin's successor as chairman and chief executive of American Motors. "He'd go to Wall Street and they loved him -- it was all relationships."
Mr. Chapin's father was one of the founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company, which Roy Chapin Jr. joined in 1938 soon after graduating with honors from Yale University. After Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors, Mr. Chapin served as treasurer, vice president and then executive vice president before becoming chief executive and chairman in January 1967. When Mr. Meyers resigned in early 1982 after selling control to Renault, Mr. Chapin was briefly chairman of an executive committee of the American Motors board.
Mr. Chapin's marriage to Ruth Mary Ruxton ended in divorce; she died in 1995. He is survived by his second wife, Loise Chapin of Geyserville, Calif., Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., and Nantucket.
In addition to William Chapin, of Grosse Pointe, Mich., Mr. Chapin is survived by two sons, Roy D. Chapin III of North Palm Beach, Fla., and Christopher K. Chapin of Washington; a daughter, Penny Chapin de Estrada of Buenos Aires; a stepson, Robert L. Wickser Jr. of San Francisco; three stepdaughters, Alexandra Balantine of Brewster, N.Y., Lita Toland of New Canaan, Conn., and Hope Wickser of North Salem, N.Y.; two brothers, John C. Chapin of Washington and Daniel Chapin of Danville, Calif.; two sisters, Joan C. Hutton of Locust Valley, N.Y., and Marian C. Higbie of Grosse Pointe Farms; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Massachusetts Death Index
Name: Roy D Chapin
Certificate: 041468
Death Place: Nantucket
Death Date: 5 Aug 2001
Birth Place: Michigan
Birth Date: 21 Sep 1915
Spouse: Loise Baldwin
OBITUARY
Roy D. Chapin Jr., 85; Ran American Motors
By KEITH BRADSHER
Published: August 7, 2001
DETROIT, Aug. 6— Roy D. Chapin Jr., a former chairman and chief executive of the American Motors Corporation who oversaw the company's purchase of the Jeep Corporation in 1970, died on Sunday of heart failure at his summer home in Nantucket, Mass., his son, William R. Chapin, said. He was 85.
Mr. Chapin ran American Motors from 1967 until 1977. Despite being dwarfed by General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler, American Motors prospered during his early years in charge, as its international operations expanded and the sales of its compact cars benefited from rising oil prices.
When American Motors bought the struggling Jeep operations from Kaiser Industries for $75 million, some derided the purchase as a costly dalliance in the obscure market for sport utility vehicles at a time when American Motors needed to invest large sums to update its aging lineup of cars. But the Jeep operation improved steadily through the 1970's.
American Motors was crippled in the mid-1970's by a surge of imported cars from Japan that were less expensive and even more fuel-efficient than American Motors' offerings. Renault began investing in American Motors in 1979 and eventually took control of the ailing company before selling it to Chrysler in 1987. One of the reasons Chrysler was attracted to American Motors was the Jeep brand.
William R. Chapin said today that when his father looked back over his career, he was proudest of his involvement with Jeep.
Roy Chapin was considering the idea of buying Jeep when he had lunch in California with Henry J. Kaiser, the industrialist who owned Jeep, and who turned out to be interested in selling, Mr. Chapin's son said. Robert Casey, the transportation curator at the Henry Ford Museum, said that American Motors' ownership of the Jeep brand was crucial to the company's survival until 1987. "That legacy was what kept American Motors together instead of being sold off as factories and other pieces," he said.
While Renault kept American Motors virtually intact as an American subsidiary, Chrysler combined most of its design, engineering and manufacturing operations with its own. William Chapin said his father had supported Renault's investments in American Motors but had been dismayed by the sale to Chrysler.
"That was, frankly, a real disappointment for my father," said William Chapin, who worked as a marketer for American Motors in Detroit and Paris until 1986.
Jeep has changed corporate owners again since the Chrysler purchase. Daimler-Benz of Germany bought Chrysler in 1998 to form what is now DaimlerChrysler.
Back in an era when personal relationships were still vital to securing financing from Wall Street, Roy Chapin was a well-known industrialist who inspired great confidence among the leading financiers of his day, who provided the continued loans and other investments needed to keep American Motors solvent.
"He was a blueblood, and money attracts money," said Gerald C. Meyers, who was Mr. Chapin's successor as chairman and chief executive of American Motors. "He'd go to Wall Street and they loved him -- it was all relationships."
Mr. Chapin's father was one of the founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company, which Roy Chapin Jr. joined in 1938 soon after graduating with honors from Yale University. After Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors, Mr. Chapin served as treasurer, vice president and then executive vice president before becoming chief executive and chairman in January 1967. When Mr. Meyers resigned in early 1982 after selling control to Renault, Mr. Chapin was briefly chairman of an executive committee of the American Motors board.
Mr. Chapin's marriage to Ruth Mary Ruxton ended in divorce; she died in 1995. He is survived by his second wife, Loise Chapin of Geyserville, Calif., Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., and Nantucket.
In addition to William Chapin, of Grosse Pointe, Mich., Mr. Chapin is survived by two sons, Roy D. Chapin III of North Palm Beach, Fla., and Christopher K. Chapin of Washington; a daughter, Penny Chapin de Estrada of Buenos Aires; a stepson, Robert L. Wickser Jr. of San Francisco; three stepdaughters, Alexandra Balantine of Brewster, N.Y., Lita Toland of New Canaan, Conn., and Hope Wickser of North Salem, N.Y.; two brothers, John C. Chapin of Washington and Daniel Chapin of Danville, Calif.; two sisters, Joan C. Hutton of Locust Valley, N.Y., and Marian C. Higbie of Grosse Pointe Farms; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
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