My 50's Frigidaire Imperial Refrigerator and Range set... Pics inside! But can you tell me more?

[danemodsandy]

Nice Shot!

:The photo below is a favorite of mine."

I can see why. Great car, great background, and a very sophisticated colour sense.

There must be 250 pounds of chrome on that Caddy. At that, '58 Cadillacs weren't the GM chrome champions that year - that distinction went to that year's Buick Century. Even though the Century wasn't the TOL Buick, it had more chrome (by weight) than either the Caddy or Buick's own Limited Riviera.

That year's Olds was no shrinking violet in the chrome department either.

 

[funkyimperial]

Wow-

Thanks for all of the input and ideas and compliments. I showed my boyfriend these entries and he was blown away—amazed that so many people would share our admiration for these beauties. That led us into an interesting debate as to why mainstream styling has become so watered down over the past 30 years. I'd venture to say that only recently has styling re-invented itself with the mid-70's being about the last era of unique 'across the board' styling.

Then we started looking at all of the innovations of the past- the "turn away" steering wheel of the Thunderbirds, sequential lighting, etc. Where did all of those great ideas go?!?

Lowering the standard of what is deemed to be acceptable quality in a product is a dangerous thing; it is a Pandora's box. Once decreased, it is next to impossible to reverse it—especially in today's highly consumer-tested markets that suggest people don't expect something to last for more than a few years. Case in point: IKEA.

The problem is simple. Companies care not as much for their reputation as they do for their bottom line and they are going for volume. In past days, products were BUILT TO LAST because that was their handshake. Today, they are manufactured with built-in life expectancies. Volume vs. quality.

It's a shame that "quality" is a term synonymous only with names such as Vuitton, Rolex, Bentley and BOSE.

BUT I DIGRESS!

Here are some scans for ads that I show people whenever they are over. Pretty interesting.

Does anyone know how the "Ice Ejector" works on this fridge? I think I am missing some parts there too... Grrr. And thanks for the info on Raymond Loewy. Damn, if it was interesting, this guy styled it! I'm thinking the fridge is a '56 and the stove is a '55—a likely testement to the original owner buying the stove first then saving up for a year to get the fridge.

In regards to the replacement of parts, I have found a plumbing company here in Los Angeles that has a HUGE warehouse of nothing but old stoves, fridges and other appliances from the 40-70's. Probably about 500+ machines. They sometimes rent to the studios but otherwise they are just sitting there available for people to purchase, etc. I am going in the next week or so and I will take pics of the place and post them. Lastly, for insurance purposes, what should I estimate their value to be?

Again, THANKS for the info. on these pieces I've received. If there is anything else, keep it coming!

 

[funkyimperial]

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More ad pics.

 

[funkyimperial]

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Another ad pic. This one is possibly a '56 stove?

 

[danemodsandy]

You've Done Pretty Well!

Shawn (is that your name?):

I hope you appreciate how good a job you've done on both your Frigidaires and the advertising you've collected. It is amazing that you were able to find adverts for the exact models you have, in the exact colour you have.

Your appliances are not only pretty rare, you have obviously spent some real time cleaning and buffing them to the condition we see. Most appliances are that clean for the first two hours after installation - and then, never again, LOL.

Remember that while Raymond Loewy established a general styling direction for Frigidaire appliances in 1947, GM seems to have begun handling yearly styling changes in-house somewhere around 1954 or so; you can see a change from Loewy's simplicity to more glamorous styling that resembled what GM was doing on its cars. That means the '55 and '56 models may not be completely Loewy-designed. Then in 1957, GM did the new squared-off Sheer Look completely in-house, with Loewy's company, Raymond Loewy Associates, doing only the brochures.

 

[jamiel]

I remember my aunt having this type of refrigerator in 1972 in a rental house in Pasadena, CA. Thought it was so weird to have the freezer below.

Curious how the refrigeration system works...does the fan suck the cold area from the area above the freezer and send it out at the top? Was the freezer self-defrosting, or did you have to defrost it?

 

[customline]

Wow.....

You have some beautiful units here. I'm very jealous !!!!!

 

[funkyimperial]

Thanks danemodsandy!

It's nice to see that people recognize that I did work for a day or so scrubbing each of these guys with a toothbrush! I'm a bit OCD when it comes to things like this... I want them to shine as if it were 1956!!!!!

It is true that Loewy probably had less to do with the design on this model. That's OK. Whomever worked on it (if they are still with us) deserves a huge compliment. I wonder if I called Frigidaire if they would be able to pint me into the direction of getting more info on the design. I love seeing old mock-ups and design drawings, etc.

I'm also wondering what I have these insured for? It's difficult to determine because prices seem to be all over the place.

 

[tlee618]

All I can say/add is WOW these take your breath away!!!!!

 

[laundromat]

turquoise

These Frigidaires are the older mint shade,not turquoise that came out in late '57

 

[danemodsandy]

Funky:

"It is true that Loewy probably had less to do with the design on this model. That's OK. Whomever worked on it (if they are still with us) deserves a huge compliment. I wonder if I called Frigidaire if they would be able to pint me into the direction of getting more info on the design. I love seeing old mock-ups and design drawings, etc."

Frigidaire has changed hands twice since your appliances were designed and built, and trust me, the current owners (Electrolux) have nothing dating back to that time. I recently researched an article on the Sheer Look appliances of 1957 for the magazine where I'm Senior Editor, Modernism. I had to purchase vintage magazine ads on eBay just to get pictures for the article, though I had to get permission from Electrolux to reprint them, since they hold the copyright for the vintage stuff along with the rights to the brand name. The company just didn't have anything going back that far.

The only way more info is going to surface is if someone finds something in GM's archives (if it didn't go to White Consolidated Industries when that company bought Frigidaire), and whatever remains on Frigidaire in the GM days has probably been buried in a Bekins warehouse for 35 years, forgotten. None of my contacts at GM were able to help on the article.

If you have any interest in the article, back issues of Modernism are available through www.modernismmagazine.com . The issue with the article was Fall, 2008.

 

[funkyimperial]

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Danemodsandy: I'm curious if the issues can be downloaded from the website or if should be purchased as back issues? I am very interested in seeing the article...

As well, hmm, a Bekins storage? I would LOVE to search through the records; very interesting to run across original spec sheets and mockups for these.

THANKS again for everyone who contributed their knowledge or advice on this thread. And if anyone knows where to get the parts I mentioned above please feel free to email me.

)

 

[danemodsandy]

Bac k Issue

The article isn't on the site, so a back issue would be the way to get it.

 

[lotsosudz]

The Frgidare Beauties

The Refer is definately a 56. My folks had the model with a separate bottom freezer. I loved the drop down Hydrator in the fridge. Ours ran like a champ for eons, Hope yours does too. Congrats on a very envyalble score.