Ralph Carlson Blog

The 50’s were a time of optimism.  Just a decade past World War II, America could do anything and we weren’t about to be subtle .  One example was the exuberant tail fins that appeared, flourished and then vanished.  There is a fantastic gallery of tailfins over at SixpackTech.com where I found the beauty to the right .

Another gallery and a related article from the New York Times.  Beautiful pictures showing all the variations that the different companies worked out as the tailfin reached its crescendo in 1959.  Here is an example from a 1959 DeSoto.

And a compendium of 50’s Dream Cars from Rewind the 50’s.  Here you will find some more obscure examples of the 50’s dream car. 

Like this Packard from 1956.

Or maybe you prefer this Ford.

The 50’s optimism about the future is displayed in this video glamorizing the process of designing the 1959 Chevrolet.  It is a bit long and pretentious but you can see that the future is bright and full of promise and American was ready for the challenge.  Contrast the vision of the 50’s with the small visions of today and the fear with which we anticipate the future and question our ability to meet whatever might come.  Take me back to the 50’s when the future looked bright and pass me those shades.

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