How A Blind Man Invented Cruise Control | Jack Teetor #444 | The Way I Heard It

Ralph Teetor loved to tinker.

As a little boy, he was always in his Dad’s workshop—building, fabricating, working on this or that. One day, Ralph got an infection in his eye. The infection spread to his other eye, and soon, the boy was totally blind. But young Ralph continued to tinker. Then, somehow, he got accepted into a prestigious engineering school. And then, long before hiring the handicapped was a thing, he wound up in the US military, where his radical idea dramatically improved the way allied submarines functioned during the war. After that, Ralph went on to run one of the most consequential companies in automotive history. And somewhere along the way, he invented cruise control and the automatic transmission.

Years later, Ralph’s nephew, Jack Teetor, decided to tell the story of his extraordinary ancestor. He did so in the form of a documentary called “Blind Logic,” that he wrote, produced, and directed himself. Not long ago, Jack sent me a link to his film and asked me if I’d consider narrating the story of Ralph’s life. I said sure. It’s a remarkable story, told with great affection, which is now winning all sorts of industry awards. And so, I invited Jack onto the podcast to talk about his uncle, and his own commitment to make damn sure the world never forgets what he accomplished.

He's a terrific guest, and our conversation is worth your time.

Watch Blind Logic: The Ralph R. Teetor Story:
https://bit.ly/4o3tAUz

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Knobel Tennessee Whiskey—a Knobel whiskey for a noble cause. Try it now:
https://bit.ly/KnobelSpiritsxTWIHI

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