William Agee, CEO...

...of Bendix Corporation in the 1970s whose relationship with a female subordinate made him famous, died at age 79.

For those of us who were around back then and kinda, sorta paying attention to business news, it was a big story. From his New York Times obit:

As it turned out, it was a recruiting decision — the hiring in spring 1979 of a bright, promising female employee named Mary Cunningham — and Mr. Agee’s subsequent handling of their relationship that largely defined his business career, touching off a national discussion about workplace behavior that reverberates today.

Mr. Agee originally hired Ms. Cunningham, who also had a Harvard M.B.A., as his executive assistant. She quickly moved up the ranks at Bendix, becoming vice president for strategic planning within 15 months.

Soon after that, however, she was forced to leave the company under pressure amid allegations that she and Mr. Agee were having an affair — something they both denied. They later divorced their spouses, and they married in 1982.