William G. McGowan

THEN: MCI Chairman William G. McGowan underwent a heart transplant in 1987. After a six-month recovery, he returned to his post as chairman until his death in 1992. During his tenure at MCI, the company grew from startup to $9.5 billion and had 16 percent of the American domestic and international long-distance market.

NOW: McGowan, through his role with MCI, played a key role in the breakup of the Bell System. Following MCI’s 1974 lawsuit against AT&T, McGowan cooperated with the U.S. DoJ to bring about a 1982 agreement that lead to the divestiture of AT&T and the opening of the U.S. long-distance market.