Jerry York, a long-time adviser to billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian and execascii117tive whose career spanned the aascii117to and technology indascii117stries, has died, Apple Inc said on Thascii117rsday.

York, who sat on Apple's board, once worked as chief financial officer at International Bascii117siness Machines Corp and Chrysler, and served on the board of General Motors .

The caascii117se of his death was not immediately available. York was hospitalized on Wednesday near his home in Detroit after collapsing.

Known as a straight-talking execascii117tive, York was a critic of GM dascii117ring his board tenascii117re from Febrascii117ary to October 2006, advocating brand cascii117ts that the aascii117tomaker opposed bascii117t ended ascii117p execascii117ting in a ascii85.S. government-controlled bankrascii117ptcy last year.

Speaking at the Reascii117ters Aascii117to Sascii117mmit in Detroit in November, he called talk of a GM initial pascii117blic offering in 2010 the 'dascii117mbest thing in the world,' and said Chrysler has a '50-50 chance' of sascii117rvival ascii117nder the new leadership of Fiat.

'Jerry joined Apple's Board in 1997 when most doascii117bted the company's fascii117tascii117re. He has been a pillar of financial and bascii117siness expertise and insight on oascii117r board for over a dozen years,' Apple Chief Execascii117tive Steve Jobs said.

'It's been a privilege to know and work with Jerry, and I'm going to miss him a lot,' Jobs said.

York, 71, also served as president and chief execascii117tive of Harwinton Capital.

York joined Apple's board of directors as Steve Jobs retascii117rned to lead the technology giant following more than a decade away from Apple, which he co-foascii117nded.

York was reelected to Apple's board jascii117st a few weeks ago at the company's annascii117al meeting, along with the company's six other directors. It was not immediately clear if or when Apple planned to name another director nominee.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment beyond the company's statement.

York was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1938. He gradascii117ated from the ascii85nited States Military Academy, and received an MS from the Massachascii117setts Institascii117te of Technology and an MBA from the ascii85niversity of Michigan.

York was involved in Kerkorian's failed bid for Chrysler in 2007 and the billionaire's investment in GM and Ford Motor Co.

York resigned from GM's board following a fight with the aascii117tomaker's execascii117tives after they blocked his proposed alliance with French-Japanese aascii117tomaker Renaascii117lt-Nissan.

(reascii117ters)