The Golden Age of the Automobile – the 1950s in America

• “…at the root of America’s disproportionate reverence for automobility there is something profoundly sexual. Few people give ultimate devotion to sex; their really ultimate devotion goes to religions like this one.” – theologian Martin Marty, 1958

Dizzy Gillespie, “Swing Low, Sweet Cadillac”

American Automobile Consumption During the 1950s

• Purchases were connected to well-being, satisfaction, pleasure, and comfort

• Therefore, a large variety of models were offered

• Re-tooling took place faster and faster

• Advertising costs increased sharply

• Quality declined

In the end, accessories were more important during the late 1950s than the actual marque itself! – Lewis Crusoe at Ford

Hot Rod Films of the 1950s

• Hot Rod (1950)

• Hot Rod Rumble (1957)

• Drag Strip Girl (1957)

• Hot Rod Gang (1958)

• The Ghost of Drag Strip Hollow (1959)

• Hot Rod Girl (1956)

What were the Cars of the 1950s Like?

Major Historical Developments During the 1950s

• The Cold War – Korea, 1950; Hungary 1956• The Eisenhower Era, 1953-1961• Affluence and the Move to the Suburbs• The Rise of Youth Culture – Music, Film, TV• The Organization Man and the Lonely Crowd• Valium and Alcohol• Happy Days?• Sputnik and the Space Race

1955 Chevrolet

1955 Ford

1956 Packard

1957 Chevrolet

1957 Ford Skyliner

1958 Plymouth Fury

1958 Buick

1958 Edsel

1959 Cadillac

1950 Jaguar XK-120

1953 Corvette

The Rise of the Critics

• John Keats – The Insolent Chariots

• Vance Packard – The Hidden Persuaders

• S.I Hayakawa

• Lewis Mumford

California Smog – Note Brown Clouds!

1950s Automobile Dealer Abuses

• Bait and Switch

• Finance Pack

• Unhorsing the Customer

• Result: 1958 Automotive Disclosure Act – Monroney stickers

Small Town Dealers – Garten Motors, Hinton, West Virginia