Crawford Gordon
Encyclopedia
Crawford Gordon Jr. was a leader of wartime defense production in Canada
under Minister of Munitions and Supply C.D. Howe during the Second World War
. He was perhaps one of the greatest industrialists and business minds in Canadian history.
's "boys", or "dollar-a-year men
" during the Second World War, helping the government organize industrial resources to meet the needs of wartime production and resource management.
("Avro Canada"), a subsidiary of A.V. Roe and Company of the U.K., to assist with problems in development and production of the CF-100 Canuck fighter interceptor. Under Gordon's encouragement to Avro's designers, Avro offered to design and build the new supersonic
jet
interceptor
identified by the Canadian Chiefs of Staff
as needed to counter a Soviet Union
bomber
threat. In 1953 the government commenced funding of a study for what would first be the design for the C104 delta-wing aircraft, and eventually the CF-105 Arrow.
During Crawford's tenure in the 1950s, A.V. Roe Canada was restructured into two separate divisions: Avro Aircraft Ltd. and Orenda Engines, both based at Malton Airport. The total labour force of both aviation companies reached 15,000 in 1958. During the same period, A.V. Roe Canada also purchased a number of companies, including Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
, Canada Car and Foundry (1957) and Canadian Steel Improvement Ltd. By 1958, A. V. Roe Canada was an industrial giant with over 50,000 employees in a far-flung empire of 44 companies involved in coal mining, steel making, railway rolling stock, aircraft and aero-engine manufacturing, as well as computers and electronics. The companies generated annual sales in the $450 million range, ranking A.V. Roe Canada as the third largest corporation in Canada.
government in which Howe served was defeated, Gordon had to deal with the new Progressive Conservative
government of John Diefenbaker
, a government that narrowly viewed such ambitious, costly projects.
Gordon may have clashed with the Diefenbaker government due to a number of pressures, including the unexpected delays in getting the Avro Arrow into production, and the threat to the Arrow from the rise of the missile (it was designed to intercept manned bombers). There may have also been a clash of personalities: one of several meetings between the two, Gordon was described as "drunken, rude" and "puffed (cigarette) smoke in the old man's face" during their meeting. Gordon was a heavy drinker and Diefenbaker a teetotaler and non-smoker.
By the summer of 1966, his net worth of $3 million had mostly evaporated. He had bought two companies and held one CEO position, but eventually lost it all.
Crawford Gordon died in New York City
on 26 January 1967 of liver failure. Friends said he drank himself to his death. Gordon could handle success, but not failure.
in the 1996 mini-series
The Arrow
. Dramatic licence may have been taken in this movie by showing Gordon's secretary Claire as being a mistress, and the breakup of that relationship during 1957 is shown as leading to drinking problems
and depression
. These drinking problems and depression then served to exacerbate his distrust of the Diefenbaker government into outright abuse. That abuse did not help with the government's disdain for the Arrow program while it was under budget
pressure to make just one choice for aeronautic
defense of Canadian airspace
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
under Minister of Munitions and Supply C.D. Howe during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was perhaps one of the greatest industrialists and business minds in Canadian history.
Early years
Gordon was born in Winnipeg in 1914. He was the first child of Crawford Gordon Sr. and Ethel Fortune, the latter of whom had survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912.Second World War
Gordon was one of C. D. HoweC. D. Howe
Clarence Decatur Howe, PC , generally known as C. D. Howe, was a powerful Canadian Cabinet minister of the Liberal Party. Howe served in the governments of Prime Ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King and Louis St. Laurent continuously from 1935 to 1957...
's "boys", or "dollar-a-year men
One-dollar salary
Several top executives in large businesses receive a salary of one dollar. In place of a salary, the executives receive stock options. In the United States, this approach impacts personal tax liability because although stock and option grants are taxed at federal income rates, they are exempt from...
" during the Second World War, helping the government organize industrial resources to meet the needs of wartime production and resource management.
Avro Canada
In October 1951, Howe, arranged for Gordon, now with the Department of Defense Production, to take over as President and General Manager of A. V. Roe CanadaAvro Canada
Commonly known as Avro Canada, this company started in 1945 as an aircraft plant and became within thirteen years the third-largest company in Canada, one of the largest 100 companies in the world, and directly employing over 50,000...
("Avro Canada"), a subsidiary of A.V. Roe and Company of the U.K., to assist with problems in development and production of the CF-100 Canuck fighter interceptor. Under Gordon's encouragement to Avro's designers, Avro offered to design and build the new supersonic
Supersonic
Supersonic speed is a rate of travel of an object that exceeds the speed of sound . For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C this speed is approximately 343 m/s, 1,125 ft/s, 768 mph or 1,235 km/h. Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound are often...
jet
Jet aircraft
A jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
interceptor
Interceptor aircraft
An interceptor aircraft is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically to prevent missions of enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Interceptors generally rely on high speed and powerful armament in order to complete their mission as quickly as possible and set up...
identified by the Canadian Chiefs of Staff
Chief of the Defence Staff (Canada)
The Chief of the Defence Staff is the second most senior member of the Canadian Forces, and heads the Armed Forces Council, having primary responsibility for command, control, and administration of the forces, as well as military strategy, plans, and requirements...
as needed to counter a Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
threat. In 1953 the government commenced funding of a study for what would first be the design for the C104 delta-wing aircraft, and eventually the CF-105 Arrow.
During Crawford's tenure in the 1950s, A.V. Roe Canada was restructured into two separate divisions: Avro Aircraft Ltd. and Orenda Engines, both based at Malton Airport. The total labour force of both aviation companies reached 15,000 in 1958. During the same period, A.V. Roe Canada also purchased a number of companies, including Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company.Incorporated in 1928 and operational in 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation which was a merger of the Dominion Coal Company, the Dominion Iron and Steel Company and the...
, Canada Car and Foundry (1957) and Canadian Steel Improvement Ltd. By 1958, A. V. Roe Canada was an industrial giant with over 50,000 employees in a far-flung empire of 44 companies involved in coal mining, steel making, railway rolling stock, aircraft and aero-engine manufacturing, as well as computers and electronics. The companies generated annual sales in the $450 million range, ranking A.V. Roe Canada as the third largest corporation in Canada.
The Avro Arrow
Gordon continued to ask for further funding as the interceptor program for the CF-105 Arrow proceeded, particularly as the program scope expanded to include the new Orenda Iroquois advanced turbojet engine, when other manufacturers' engine designs were dropped or proved inadequate. When the LiberalLiberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
government in which Howe served was defeated, Gordon had to deal with the new Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
government of John Diefenbaker
John Diefenbaker
John George Diefenbaker, PC, CH, QC was the 13th Prime Minister of Canada, serving from June 21, 1957, to April 22, 1963...
, a government that narrowly viewed such ambitious, costly projects.
Gordon may have clashed with the Diefenbaker government due to a number of pressures, including the unexpected delays in getting the Avro Arrow into production, and the threat to the Arrow from the rise of the missile (it was designed to intercept manned bombers). There may have also been a clash of personalities: one of several meetings between the two, Gordon was described as "drunken, rude" and "puffed (cigarette) smoke in the old man's face" during their meeting. Gordon was a heavy drinker and Diefenbaker a teetotaler and non-smoker.
Final years
Gordon's battles and gambles finally lost out when the Arrow program was canceled on 20 February 1959. Gordon was fired as Avro president not long after. Gordon's life was on a downward spiral afterward.By the summer of 1966, his net worth of $3 million had mostly evaporated. He had bought two companies and held one CEO position, but eventually lost it all.
Crawford Gordon died in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on 26 January 1967 of liver failure. Friends said he drank himself to his death. Gordon could handle success, but not failure.
Crawford Gordon in popular culture
Crawford Gordon was portrayed, with a good visible likeness, by Dan AykroydDan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
in the 1996 mini-series
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
The Arrow
The Arrow
The Arrow is a four-hour miniseries produced for CBC Television in 1996, starring Dan Aykroyd as Crawford Gordon, experienced wartime production leader during World War II and president of A. V. Roe Canada during its attempt to produce the Avro Arrow supersonic jet interceptor. The film also stars...
. Dramatic licence may have been taken in this movie by showing Gordon's secretary Claire as being a mistress, and the breakup of that relationship during 1957 is shown as leading to drinking problems
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
and depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
. These drinking problems and depression then served to exacerbate his distrust of the Diefenbaker government into outright abuse. That abuse did not help with the government's disdain for the Arrow program while it was under budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
pressure to make just one choice for aeronautic
Aeronautics
Aeronautics is the science involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of airflight-capable machines, or the techniques of operating aircraft and rocketry within the atmosphere...
defense of Canadian airspace
Canadian airspace
Canadian airspace is the region of navigable airspace above the surface of the Earth that falls within a region roughly defined by the Canadian land mass, the Canadian arctic, the Canadian archipelago, and areas of the high seas....
.