| Long and sleek! With Elvis as the hero of the | | | | became aggressive in their creativity. By |
| day during the 1950s, whatever he drove | | | | 1957 and 1958 the designers produced |
| become the car of the day. And Elvis loved | | | | disastrously overblown responses. Sharp clean |
| the glamour that shiny new tail-fins | | | | fins reached in all directions. They were |
| exhibited. His fans loved them, too, which | | | | streaked with chrome, and somewhere in the |
| led to over thirty heart-stopping models | | | | middle a body was grafted into them. Bright |
| being designed during the 1950s. No one cared | | | | yellows! Passionate reds! Baby blues! And |
| back then whether cars were gas-guzzlers or | | | | regardless of the weather where one lived, |
| whether the paint job would last, or whether | | | | convertibles were in, even if you never |
| the shiny chrome that protruded out the back | | | | lowered the top. |
| begged to have dents inserted within the | | | | |
| first few weeks. | | | | The intense competition among the car |
| | | | manufacturers meant that each model became |
| The appeal of cars during the 1950s was more | | | | extinct quickly. Planned obsolescence meant |
| than just Elvis. It was prestige and glamour | | | | the customers had to choose between buying a |
| for even the average working person. The | | | | new car each year or being a social leper. |
| feeling of luxury seeped into one's feelings | | | | Because of the expense of redesigning all |
| and emotions, and romance bloomed with | | | | models every year, the manufacturers took to |
| respect while riding in these elegant | | | | keeping the inner workings of the cars |
| vehicles. | | | | basically the same and only changing the |
| | | | outward look. |
| The Chrysler Town & Country Newport coupe | | | | |
| which came out in 1950 didn't have fins (they | | | | By 1958 some models,such as the 1958 |
| started creeping into the design around | | | | Oldsmobile, were beginning to be called |
| 1952). Yet it wasn't the typical car of the | | | | 'ugly.' Some even said it looked like a brick |
| 1940s. Almost a dinosaur compared to today's | | | | with a hardtop sitting on it. However, the |
| styles, the Newport featured distinctive, | | | | indented chrome on the doors still caught |
| external wood framing (referred to as being a | | | | one's eye of respect. |
| 'Woodie') and strongly appealed to the hunter | | | | |
| and sportsmen. | | | | All systems self-destruct from within. The |
| | | | era of the glamour cars had outdone itself |
| Pontiac had a mascot - an Indian Chief- whose | | | | and common sense dictated that what would |
| unsmiling face formed the base of the front | | | | follow in the 1960s would be based on |
| hood. His headdress consisted of streaks of | | | | performance, a concern for the environment, |
| chrome sliding back over the hood and being | | | | and conservative packaging. During the 1960s |
| picked up again on the trunk. Sleek looking! | | | | people weren't impressed with external |
| Everyone wanted a car with a personality, and | | | | appearances to the exclusion of what existed |
| the Indian Chief gave the Pontiac one. | | | | underneath. This attitude was reflected |
| | | | towards both people and cars. Yet, who will |
| Because the cars of the early 1950s had a | | | | ever forget Elvis? Or the glamour cars of the |
| somewhat dowdy appearance but reflected the | | | | 1950s? |
| potential of sparkling glamour, car designers | | | | |