Roger Smith's Painful Legacy at Chrysler

GENERAL MOTORS GOT RID OF THE WRONG GUY LAST WEEK. BOB Stempel is not responsible for the disaster at GM. That distinction belongs to Roger B. Smith, Stempel's predecessor as chairman, made infamous in the film Roger & Me. As CEO from 1981 to 1990, Smith designed and executed the strategy that has impoverished the industrial giant. Stempel was laboring to undo the damage when GM's board forced him to fall on his sword after little more than two years on the job. By week's end the directors reportedly began moving to give Smith a final shove as well.

Smith occupies...