Decorative Refrigerator side by sides from the 60's

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pcasa

pcasa

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Does anyone remember the ad campaign from the 60's - or the actual refrigerators (not sure of the brand) - that were shown in decorative "painted" styles - one I remember in particular had an Oriental theme - maybe they used interchangeable panels - my mom saved the ad - but I guess it got lost long ago - I've tried googling/ebaying with no luck - ring a bell with anyone????
 
interesting - but not it

thanks classiccaprice - but that's not quite it - I've never seen this ad before and I was a senior in high school in 1968 and watching LOTS of TV - the ad campaign I'm looking for was a double page spread in House Beautiful probably and I think the refrigerators were all side by sides... BTW - do you have a vintage Chevrolet Caprice??? my dad brought the first model in that metallic aqua color
 
The 1965 Caprice was a beautiful car.

I used to have a 79 Caprice. My first car and in the family since new. She only had 78,000 when I got rid of her, but she had a lot of issues. It killed me to let it go. Now I have a '63 Comet with only 48,000 miles. It's more my style and in great shape! Here's a picture right after I got the Comet and right before I sold the Caprice.

classiccaprice++7-5-2014-21-23-52.jpg
 
caprice

I remember thinking how small the 65 caprice looked after our 58 impala and 59 olds - daddy loved cars ... and of course, so do I! (along with all kinds of appliances and other crazy stuff)
 
Thank you. Here's the thread from when I got it. The Dart was pretty sweet too, but Comet's are easier/cheaper to get parts for thanks to the popularity of the early Mustangs. That's one of the main reason's I wanted the car. It also is relatively fuel efficient and a size that works well on today's roads. I only wish it were a convertible, but the price was right and the car is in amazing condition.

I love tailfins.[this post was last edited: 7/5/2014-22:46]

http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?39296
 
very cool!

my favorite car from childhood was my aunt's pink rambler station wagon (this is a google image - not hers)

pcasa-2014070521560107501_1.png
 
Not exactly what you're searching but if you search for ads in google books with search terms like Decorator, Designer, Refrigerator and Side by Side and choose the approximate dates, you might find it.  

 

Here are a few ads

 

http://books.google.com/books?id=wlUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA80-IA4&dq=&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
 

http://books.google.ca/books?id=Ec4DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA25&dq=&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
 

http://books.google.ca/books?id=HNoDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA23&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
 

This isn't a side by side but I'd love to have this kitchen!

 

http://books.google.com/books?id=pVUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA125&dq=&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
 

 
 
Those were pretty cool, thanks for sharing.

Have any of those styles ever been found in the wild 30-40+ years later?
 
I remember sitting in an automotive design class at The Art Center College of Design out here in Pasadena and being told by the instructor just how wonderful and forward thinking the AMC pacer was. He felt that the only reason the car was a flop was that it was too far ahead of it's time. At that point I turned to a class mate and asked "How far ahead of it's time was it? It's 1989 and the car is still ugly." Now I'll admit that I don't find the darn things quite as unattractive today as I did then, but I think that has more to do with nostalgia than anything else. Cars like this are why AMC went under.
 
Bill Reddig Designer American Motors/Kelvinator

... how ironic these searches turn out - seems that the designer for the Kelvinators that I was researching was previously at American Motors - and worked on the Rambler - which was another favorite design of mine posted here ... I found a comment from his daughter Ann Reddig on a vintage advertising forum - if you google him - you'll see an interesting story! ... BTW carmine & xraytech - the only mention I have found of any existing models was the FEDERAL in someone's grandmother's basement - ah - a new quest is born![this post was last edited: 7/6/2014-12:33]
 
I remember the day they unboxed those Kelvinators for the sales floor. I wasn't supposed to be out front much since I looked pretty scruffy from cleaning used appliances all day but I'd sneak out there anyway. Those designer pieces were very pricey, especially the Chinese Dragon model. That little model, the Maverick, had real "faux fir" on it, not just paint. My mom liked the top freezer one (not pictured) that had chicken wire and a huge rooster painted on the front. I've never forgotten them...they were so cool. The Amana side by sides were no longer the most expensive refrigerators on the floor.
 
WOW!!!!

twintubdexter - finally someone who has actually SEEN one of these rare birds - do you remember the price point? and did they sell very well? how long were they on the market?? questions questions questions!
 
The only thing I can say is that they were expensive. I have no idea how well they sold. They were competing with the "rage of the day," avacado, harvest gold and shaded coppertone. I know that I saw very few come into the shop for service (remember refrigeration was rarely serviced in the home back then) so that may help indicate how well they sold. The store sold more Frigidaire than anything else but there were always several Admiral Duplex's in the service department, especially when it got hot in the summer. The largest model was huge and occasionally I was used like slave labor and went out with a service tech to pick one up. They were like moving a house!
 
thanks!

... would have loved to seen one! speaking of moving a "big one" - here's my sweet nearly 80 yr old uncle helping uncrate the vintage Traulsen I had shipped from CA - it took four men and removing a sliding glass door to get that baby inside - it's from 87 I think - luckily I happened on to a great repairman who had learned on Traulsens - only had to make two small repairs - crossed fingers!!!

pcasa-2014070613531500431_1.jpg
 
Special "decorator" fridges....

I *think* it is Frigidaire who are currently marketing modern versions of this 60s design fad. I personally LOVED all this stuff when people had it back in those days. And it is the easiest thing to do yourself if you've an ugly cosmetically challenged fridge in your collection.
I'm working on one quite similar to the Chinese Dragon Kelvinator--I have a guy custom cutting some door trim frames to hold lucite door panels (underneath will be coppery coloured Asian grasscloth wallpaper) and some VERY cool door pulls from a 60s Asian style console table I am dismantling. There just might be a market in reviving these Kelvinator looks for vintage fridge owners who want to spice up what they have stored in garages! But it may only be limited interest to the So. Cal and Phoenix mid century mod crowd....
 
Special "decorator" fridges....

I *think* it is Frigidaire who are currently marketing modern versions of this 60s design fad. I personally LOVED all this stuff when people had it back in those days. And it is the easiest thing to do yourself if you've an ugly cosmetically challenged fridge in your collection.
I'm working on one quite similar to the Chinese Dragon Kelvinator--I have a guy custom cutting some door trim frames to hold lucite door panels (underneath will be coppery coloured Asian grasscloth wallpaper) and some VERY cool door pulls from a 60s Asian style console table I am dismantling. There just might be a market in reviving these Kelvinator looks for vintage fridge owners who want to spice up what they have stored in garages! But it may only be limited interest to the So. Cal and Phoenix mid century mod crowd....
 
I remember seeing a kit at a Sears maybe 20 years ago to turn a regular fridge into a "custom" or built-in look fridge. It was metal frames, which I assume, screwed into the doors and one could insert a panel into the frame. I thought it was a great idea, but I don't think it caught on one iota.

One of my cousins always seemed to get stuck with odd duck fridges and would fearlessly paint them.
 
Just Curious...

...has anyone ever seen one of those designer Kelvinators for sale? I haven't. I suppose I would need to ask Phil in Atlanta. If one ever popped up on Craigslist he would know.

Phil's home computer room where he monitors Craigslist ads for the entire Country

twintubdexter-2014070813442100201_1.jpg
 
not me

.. but I did find two references - the daughter of the designer (Bill Reddig) has the Jack of Hearts from the family home .. and I found another reference on an advertising forum about a Federal one in a grandmother's basement ... leads me to think that they weren't sold in big numbers [this post was last edited: 7/8/2014-16:46]
 
A few years ago, I picked up a Kelvy  SxS  that was a tan color, and had colonial looking wood handles on the door. I remember it had some sort of pinstriping on it, kinda like the French Provincial one pictured. This was factory, nothing that someone did on their own.
 

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