AKRON, Ohio — Jerry O’Neil, the third generation of Akron, Ohio’s famed O’Neil family and the son of General Tire Co. founder William O’Neil, has died. He was 87.

Born Michael Gerald O’Neil in January 1922, O’Neil was the last of the direct descendants of the founders of what was once the Big Five tiremakers – Goodyear, Firestone, General, BFGoodrich and U.S. Tire. His grandfather, Michael, had founded O’Neil’s department store in Akron, and his father William started General Tire in 1915.

At age 38, O’Neil became president of General Tire in 1960, and moved the company into an era of diversification that eventually led to its sale to Continental AG.

While he retired as CEO in 1984, O’Neil remained on the board of what became GenCorp until 1993. During his 40-plus years with General, O‘Neil moved the company beyond tires and into aerospace, defense, automotive and polymer products.

The 1980s saw a rash of tire company mergers and takeovers, and it was debt incurred while fending off an attempted takeover that forced GenCorp to shed its core tire business to Continental in 1987 for a reported $620 million. (Tire Review/Akron)