'50s American Magazines Automobile Ads

'50s American Magazines Automobile Ads (very scarce edition)


Author: Yasutoshi IkutaPublished by Graphic-Sha Publishing, Kudankita, Tokyo, (1987)
ISBN 10: 4766104366ISBN 13: 9784766104363
Paperback9 x 11.85 inches, 112 pages
Some text in Japanese

The 1950s were the golden age of the American automobile, and the cars were faster, bigger, and more boldly styled than ever before. Sunday driving--Cleaver-style--in the regal family Ford, Edsel or Plymouth topped the list of national
pastimes; and teenagers, behind the wheels of their daddies' thundering T-birds, had fun, fun, fun across America's highways. The economic prosperity of the country made for an "ultramatic" boom in car manufacturing, and the
advertising industry followed suit. This classic book collects the "masterpieces" of automobile advertising, culled from the pages of such popular periodicals as Life, The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's, Look,
and Holiday. Their colorful illustrations and catchy copy give these ads a "power-packed beauty" all their own, offering a fun look at 50s culture and values. So take a cruise down memory lane with this fond look back on a time when
tail fins and chrome were the standard, and the American car was the true King of the Road---------------------
Just a look through this book will convince you that they don't make 'em like they used to. There are more than 100 illustrations in this handsome volume. Many are of automobiles whose names -- Ford, Chevrolet, Cadillac -- are known
today; others are of grand (and not-so-grand) vehicles that are no longer manufactured. They range from trim little curtained Baker Electrics, which boasted "flexibility of control" and "a standard of utility," to cars that are the stuff
of legend, like the Jordan Playboy, whose distinctive advertising stressed the fun and romance of driving. Though the styles and body shapes change, what comes through in looking at this survey of 35 years of automobile advertising is
how much fun driving seems to have been in those bygone days when gas was cheap and America still innocent.