Mechanical Engineer To Booth Babe and Back Again: The Tragicomic Career of Wayne State Engineering Alum Lucille Pieti

Society of Women Engineers archivist Troy Eller English shares the tragicomic story of Lucille Pieti, 1950 mechanical engineering alum and Miss Wayne University. Sidelined in technical writing despite her degree and experience, Pieti found her career veering farther and farther away from engineering in the mid-1950s as her bosses at Chrysler capitalized on her beauty rather than her brains. Molded into a spokeswoman at auto shows and in Hollywood, and giving specs on the Dodge La Femme’s pink umbrella instead of its engine block, Pieti reclaimed her engineering identity by leaving Chrysler, and the country, in 1955. Related Collections: Society of Women Engineers Records Society of Women Engineers Detroit Section Records Society of Women Engineers Publications The Wayne Engineer / The Buzz Saw Wayne State University Collegian Newspapers Related Resources: Collections Spotlight: “Out of the House: Detroit Women’s Organizations in the 20th Century” Amy Sue Bix – Girls Coming to Tech!: A History of American Engineering Education for Women Edward A. Malone – “Chrysler’s ‘Most Beautiful Engineer’: Lucille J. Pieti in the Pillory of Fame” Margaret W. Rossiter – Women scientists in America Episode Credits Producers: Dan Golodner and Troy Eller English Host: Dan Golodner Interviewee: Troy Eller English With support from the Reuther Podcast Collective: Bart Bealmear, Elizabeth Clemens, Meghan Courtney, Troy Eller English, Dan Golodner, Paul Neirink, and Mary Wallace