One of the greats — Donald N. Frey — has passed. Don’t know who Donald Frey was? Well, neither did I, until Roger Ebert brought him to my attention a few minutes ago. He died March 5, and this story I’m linking to was posted on Sunday, but now that I finally know, I’m letting you know:

Donald N. Frey with a '66 convertible.

Donald N. Frey, the engineer who spearheaded the design and development of the Mustang, the spunky, stylish, affordably priced “pony car” that the Ford Motor Company rolled out in the mid-1960s in one of the most successful car introductions in automotive history, died March 5 in Evanston, Ill., where he lived. He was 86.

The cause was a stroke, his son Christopher said.

Though much of the Mustang was borrowed from other Ford vehicles, including a Falcon chassis, the car developed an identity all its own for a younger generation in search of new looks and experiences. It was designed to appeal to both men and women, had a dash of elegance copied from European sports cars, and featured a galloping steed in the middle of its grille that buyers thought was, well, really cool.

Steve McQueen was almost upstaged by the souped-up Mustang he drove in the movie “Bullitt.”…

Absolutely. In fact, as cool as Steve indisputably was in that one, I sort of thought the car WAS the star of the movie.

The Mustang, of course, was the anti-Edsel. If the Edsel was Ford’s greatest failure, the Mustang was its greatest triumph — at least since the Model T. And frankly, I’d much rather drive the Mustang.

Not a recent model Mustang, of course — they hardly deserve the name — but one of the early ones, preferably a ’64 1/2, like the first one I ever saw.

It was parked in front of the Tennis Club in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where I lived from 1962-65. It was a solid, concrete example of everything exciting that was going on back in the States without me. Seeing it was like hearing my first Beatles song — an explanation, and justification, of all of the buzz I’d been hearing.

It was dramatically different from every car I’d ever seen, and the difference was magical. It was like… there were dances, then there was the Twist. There were pop groups, then there were the Beatles. There were cars, then there was the Mustang.

I didn’t know you, Mr. Frey, but that was one awesome car you brought into being!

Now, enjoy the song…