collectible & classic RETROAUTOS Once Upon A Time.

Transcription

1 collectible & classic RETROAUTOS Once Upon A Time. By the Retroautos Team Once upon a time, these photos were taken, not for the cars that appeared in them, but for the scenery. But now, when the subject scenery is long forgotten, it s the classic cars which are of interest! These photos come from the USA and Canada. The time is late November 1960, and while these images are being taken, the US Presidential race is happening between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy. Our photographer started his journey in Niagara Falls, Canada, and by the time he reached California, JFK is the President-elect. And the rest is history. Here we are on the Canadian side of the border at Niagara Falls. Right in front is a brand new Chrysler New Yorker four door hardtop, competitor to Cadillac and Lincoln. Parked behind is a 1952 or 53 Ford Mainline. Further down the street, is possibly a De Soto from 1957, behind that a 59 GM model (it has the wrap-around windscreen which was shared on all GM products that year). A 60 Chevy sits under the lamp post. On the other side of the road is a 1958 Oldsmobile, possibly one of the ugliest car of the 1950 s, a bathtub Nash (also beaten with an ugly stick) and a 1959 Desoto with its brake lights shining. It s one year to go before De Soto vanishes as a brand.

2 Still in Canada. It looks depressing and cold, and it was. A 1955 Olds 88 rolls down the street flanked on the left by a 55 Plymouth and a Chev truck, with a 59 Studebaker Lark in the distance. On the right hand side is a 1956 Plymouth in a particularly fetching pink and black and a Simca Aronde (!!). Ah, the French Canadians! New York! At a corner on 49th Street waiting for customers, is a stretched 1960 Chrysler Windsor. A couple of pedestrians stand and stare. How rude!

3 It s just taxis, I hear you say. But look closer. The one on the left is a brand new 1961 Chevy. This would have been only two months old and cost about $US2100 new. Look closely and you ll see the grille is already dented. Dragging off at the lights are a couple of 1960 s Fords and a 57 Caddy. We re right behind a 1956 Plymouth, and look, he s got powerflite automatic transmission, so says the big sign on the tunk lid. Lucky for him, no more changing gears

4 Ah, the sunny climes of Los Angeles. We re right outside Universal Studios. There s one of those horrible 58 Oldsmobiles in the background, a slick wide-track 1960 Pontiac convertible, a black VW Bug, a VW Combi and an Austin A40 Farina design. Hey man, these Californians sure buy weird little cars! What are they smokin! A parking lot near down town LA. Collectors, eat your heart out. I m not identifying any of these beauties because there s too many. By 1970 the combined value of these classics would probably not have equalled their scrap value. Yet, now, you re probably looking at half a million dollars worth, maybe a little more.

5 Still in LA, that s the old back lot of Columbia Studios, on Oak Rd. Over in the distance you can see the European Street set. Meantime, an immediate post war Dodge goes by in front of us. A blue 1953 Desoto is parked across the road. These cars looked like the 52 s except the 53 had more teeth in the grille and the windscreen was one piece instead of two. The advertising guru s called this innovation control tower visibility. But nothing could hide the plain look of these cars and sales continued to disappoint. Just sliding into view is the 1959 Oldsmobile 98 two door hardtop.now this is style.luckily for the driver the traffic lights are still green because there s no way these babies stop easily with their little drum brakes. Way over in the background are two VW s and GM and Chrysler products of varying ages, including a nice black two door 57 Chevrolet hardtop. Here we are on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and North Vermont St. This whole area is now full of mini-malls, drive-in banks fast food outlets and Starbucks. Check out the price of fuel at the Richfield gas station. If ever you want to see all of LA,all of its richness and all of its ugliness, in just one street, then drive south on Vermont from this very location to its end at the Pacific Ocean. Not a journey for the faint hearted.

6 It s Chinatown, Jake.An evocative photo taken in San Francisco s Chinatown area. It s the three cars parked across the road which draw our attention. A Ford thunderbird with continental wheel kit, a 1959 Caddy with fins stretching up into the night sky, and in front, partially hidden by the mass of the Cadillac is a Chevrolet Corvette. Note the guy on the left, standing, staring at the cars. And well he might because these three are iconic retroautos. Here they are, all lined up in a row. By comparison, everything else in the picture is just another car.