As Sloan grew older, he felt keenly his increasing isolation as his close friends died one by one. Yet he remained aloof from GM people. He never invited them to his home. Unless it was a business meeting with a clear business agenda, ha did not even sit down to a meal with any of them. He never accepted an invitation to any of their homes, even on business trips to their home towns. He was once asked how he liked Winterthur, the estate of Pierre DuPont who had been his boss as GM in 1919 and 20 and Chairman of the GM board for years thereafter. I have never been to any of the never Du-Pont homes," he answered. "Ours is a business relationship." In his earlier years Sloan had been a keen outdoorsman- bus his hiking a fishing, and camping companions had all been non-GM poope. only after his retirement in 1955, when advancing old age made it more and more difficult for him to travel, did he invite GM people to come to his home in New York-and then only to discuss business in the office wing of his apartment-for he was still a GM Director and a member of the top committees.