Regarding Henry.(Column)(a fictional interview with Henry Ford, as Ford Motor Co. prepares to celebrate its centennial)(Column)

Byline: Dutch Mandel

As we near June 17, the date on which Ford Motor Company was incorporated and this year will celebrate its centennial, we had a chance to speak with its founder, Henry Ford. Mr. Ford, thank you for taking time to talk with us. You must have a busy schedule.

Henry Ford: Well, I have been idle for a while, so you could say I'm rarin' to go!

AutoWeek: Douglas Brinkley recently released a book on your company, Wheels for the World, that is insightful as a business tool, a political manifesto, a sociological study and a thorough history of your company. Have you had a chance to read it?

HF: Tarnation, man, I lived it! Well, at least for much of it. I trust he got the facts straight as we reported them.

AW: Your heirs-William Clay Ford Sr. and his son, the current chairman and chief executive officer, William Clay Jr.-summoned Brinkley into their offices six years ago and asked him to write this history. Since Brinkley is one of the nation's leading oral historians, they offered several hundred hours of tapes that were made by many of your employees about life at Ford.

HF: I don't rightly know what those folks said after I left the building, but before I was gone I made sure to have my own employees write the history as we did it. No, sir, you can't get it done unless you're willing to do it your way.