While at its helm, Ling used LTV funds to purchase a large number of corporations, and was one of the more famous of the 1960s conglomerate managers.
[1] Ling's mother died when he was young, and he lived for a time with an aunt in Shreveport, Louisiana.
After incorporating and taking his company public in 1955, Ling found innovative ways to market his stock, including door-to-door soliciting and selling from a booth at the State Fair of Texas.
In 1961, he bought Chance Vought Aircraft, merging his interests into Ling-Temco-Vought.
His empire fell apart after he acquired the money-losing Jones & Laughlin Steel Company in 1970.