If the Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. and Apollo Tyres Ltd. deal goes through, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. will be the last major tire manufacturer "born in the U.S.A."
The Bruce Springstein song reference aside, few who followed the events surrounding the hostile takeover attempt of Goodyear in 1986 could have imagined the company would still be around. British billionaire Sir James Goldsmith was the villian, the Gordon Gekko of his time, so to speak, although Goodyear shareholders made out handsomely when the bid was foiled.
Modern Tire Dealer Editor Bob Ulrich revisits this great moment in tire industry history in his latest blog, "Goodyear was almost destroyed 27 years ago." The company officially ended takeover talk when, on this day (Nov. 20) in 1986, it paid $2.6 billion for millions of shares of stock.
