TONIGHT
E-mail a friendAugust 24, 2004
General Motors' VP of Design Ed Welburn discusses what allows him to stand out in his field. Actor Mark Ruffalo talks about what fame might bring.
Ed Welburn
Ed Welburn
Ed Welburn is GM's design chief - only the 6th in company history and the first African American. He began his GM career in '72 as an associate designer in the advanced design studios and has held positions at Oldsmobile, Saturn and Opel. He also served as Corporate Brand Center director. His passion for performance was evident in his design of the Aerotech, which established two world records. A Philadelphia native, Welburn is a graduate of Howard University, where he studied product design and sculpture.
Mark Ruffalo
Mark Ruffalo
Mark Ruffalo bartended for almost nine years while trying to break in to show biz. He garnered attention in the stage production, This is Our Youth, and the award-winning indie film, You Can Count on Me. Surgery for a brain tumor threatened to derail Ruffalo's dreams, but he made a full recovery and says the experience convinced him he had to live his life. In '06, he won a Tony nod for his Broadway debut. He has two new films in the can: the recently-released What Doesn't Kill You and The Brothers Bloom, slated for '09.