37 Facts About Frank Lorenzo

Frank Lorenzo managed Continental Airlines and Texas International Airlines between 1972 and 1990, through airline deregulation.

Frank Lorenzo was esteemed by airline regulators for his commitment to low fares, while others in the industry referred to Frank Lorenzo as "the embodiment of deregulation".

Davies, the former aerospace historian at the Smithsonian Institution put it, Frank Lorenzo "challenged the entire structure of cost-and-revenue relations that had long existed in a closely protected corporate environment and in doing so generated a cause celebre of historic proportions".

Since 1990, Frank Lorenzo has been chairman of Savoy Capital, Inc.

Frank Lorenzo's father was a long-time beauty salon proprietor in Manhattan; his mother worked as a hairdresser at their salon.

Frank Lorenzo attended Forest Hills High School and then worked his way through Columbia University, holding several jobs, including at Macy's as a salesperson and Coca-Cola as a truck driver and member of the Teamsters Union.

Frank Lorenzo graduated in 1961 with a B A degree in economics, followed by an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1963, as he was turning 23.

Frank Lorenzo spent six months in the Army reserve in 1964, and then returned to his job in New York.

Frank Lorenzo became its president and Carney its executive vice president in August 1972.

When Frank Lorenzo took control of TIA in 1972, it was on the verge of financial collapse, having lost money since 1966.

Two years later, Frank Lorenzo's management was able to steer the company to break even due to significant streamlining of operations.

Frank Lorenzo's management changed the character of the airline, having revamped its fleet, increased utilization, cut costs and dropped many losing routes, while adding flights on strong segments.

TIA and Pan Am considered the bid a "ploy to block their own chances" of completing the deal, but Eastern chairman Frank Lorenzo Borman called the offer serious.

Frank Lorenzo signed a formal contract for the acquisition of TWA in June 1985.

Frank Lorenzo restructured TIA in 1980, forming a holding company called Texas Air Corp, which was controlled by Jet Capital, as TIA had been.

Texas Air owned TIA and had cash holdings of about $100 million, which Frank Lorenzo said would be used primarily for investments in the airline industry.

Frank Lorenzo was the chairman of the new company, which was to fly shuttle flights between New York La Guardia, the airline's hub, and Boston-Logan, and Washington-National Airports.

Frank Lorenzo made two attempts to merge the companies on a friendly basis, but was rejected by its long-time Chairman Bob Six.

In particular, unions feared that Frank Lorenzo would lay off workers and that he was anti-union, demonstrated by formation of New York Air as a non-unionized company, charges which Frank Lorenzo denied by making clear the employees had the right to select union representation should they have so desired.

Frank Lorenzo claimed, and some analysts agreed, that Continental's problems were worse than they had appeared before his purchase of the airline.

Frank Lorenzo consolidated the historic TIA Houston as part of a plan to combine the routes of TIA and Continental in a hub and spoke system centered in Houston and Denver.

Continental moved its annual meeting from May to March 1982; at that meeting, Frank Lorenzo was named chairman of Continental.

Frank Lorenzo trimmed operations and expenses during the reorganization, cutting one-third of its employees, introducing new labor contracts with its employees, thus voiding the old Union contracts.

Frank Lorenzo reported a net profit of $10.4 million, which was a $36.9 million improvement from the $26.5 million loss during the same time period in 1983.

In 1975, Frank Lorenzo Borman became president and CEO of Eastern Air Lines.

Frank Lorenzo clashed frequently with the head of the machinists' union, Charlie Bryan.

In December 1985, Borman met with Frank Lorenzo to elicit possible Eastern interest.

Frank Lorenzo is that rare person who is all action and no talk.

Frank Lorenzo is a devoted family man who cares very deeply about his wife, Sharon, and their children.

Frank Lorenzo has frequently been described as "anti-union", particularly after the bankruptcy at Continental, which ended by unionized employees voiding their union contracts in the successful effort to save the airline from liquidation and permanent job losses.

Frank Lorenzo had been CEO for Continental and Texas International for 18 years, when he sold through Jet Capital his controlling interest in Continental Airlines in 1990 to Scandinavian Airlines System, and stepped down from his CEO role to pursue other entrepreneurial and investment ventures.

Frank Lorenzo's departure from Continental was a basic part of the deal, required by both Frank Lorenzo and SAS, although he remained a director of Continental for two years afterwards as part of the arrangements with SAS.

In 1992, a company in which Frank Lorenzo was a significant shareholder, but not part of management, ATX Inc.

Frank Lorenzo is a long-time trustee of The Hispanic Society of America, an institution with a free-entrance museum of art located in New York City.

Frank Lorenzo is additionally a trustee emeritus of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation located in Princeton, New Jersey.

Frank Lorenzo married Sharon Neill in 1972, and has four children.

Frank Lorenzo's wife is an adjunct professor at University of Penn law school, where she teaches a course in art law.