1st Auto Air Conditioner

[IowaZR-1]

The four Goldberg brothers, Lowell, Norman, Hiram, and Max, invented and
developed the first automobile air-conditioner. On July 17, 1946, the
temperature in Detroit was 97 degrees. The four brothers walked into old
man Henry Ford's office and sweet-talked his secretary into telling him
that four gentlemen were there with the most exciting innovation in the
auto industry since the electric starter. Henry was curious and invited
them into his office. They refused and instead asked that he come out to
the parking lot to their car. They persuaded him to get into the car, which
was about 130 degrees, turned on the air conditioner, and cooled the car
off immediately. The old man got very excited and invited them back to the
office, where he offered them $3 million for the patent. The brothers
refused, saying they would settle for $2 million, but they wanted the
recognition by having a label, 'The Goldberg Air-Conditioner,' on the
dashboard of each car in which it was installed. Now old man Ford was more
than just a little anti-Semitic, and there was no way he was going to put
the Goldberg's name on two million Fords. They haggled back and forth for
about two hours, and finally agreed on $4 million and that just their
first names would be shown. And so to this day, all Ford air conditioners
show................






Lo, Norm, Hi, and Max on the controls. So, now you know...