From Datsun 240-Z to Nissan 300-ZX — 26 Years of a Classic:
"Yutaka Katayama, affectionately known as “Mr. K” by Z owners, founded Nissan Motor’s U.S. subsidiary in 1960, and is widely considered the “father” of the Z-Car."
"Free Press Business Columnist Doron Levin wrote, “Katayama epitomized the politically incorrect Japanese auto executive. One of the few Japanese Christians, he came from a wealthy family, raced in road rallies in Australia, racked up speeding tickets everywhere he went, and unabashedly admired American culture.”
"According to author David Halberstam, “Katayama constantly clashed with superiors in Tokyo. When the executives insisted that the car that was to become the 240-Z be named ‘Fairlady’ [after the rare 1960 4-seat SPL212; the first open-air roadster imported by Nissan under the Datsun logo], Katayama and his colleagues just pried the nameplates off the first cars and replaced them with 240-Z badges."
"Finally, in the mid-1970s, Nissan yanked Katayama, and shortly thereafter committed the colossal blunder of cashiering the Datsun name.” On October 13, 1998, he was justly enshrined in the Automotive Hall of Fame." - http://members.aol.com/KarlWS/zhistory.html
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