Raymond Loewy - 120th birthday

[turquoisedude]

Raymond Loewy would have been 120 today - his influence on design of so much of the 'mid-century' was impressive.

The article linked here makes no mention of his work with Frigidaire, sadly...

Raymond Loewy, the Man Who Made the 20th Century Beautiful

You may have noticed the sepia-toned Google doodle today and clicked through to find out it’s a train designed by midcentury industrial designer Raymond

gizmodo.com

 

[supersuds]

It's great that's he's being recognized!

Of course, he wasn't a one man band. He had a large design staff. For instance, Bob Bourke did most of the work on the bullet-nose Studebaker and the beautiful 1953 "Loewy" coupes, all under Loewy's general direction.

Bourke recalled Loewy telling him about the bullet-nose Stude: "Now, Bob, eet must look like ze aeroplane!"

 

[d-jones]

My dad thought those 53 Studebaker's were the best looking cars he'd ever seen, so as soon as he could save up the money he bought one. This photo was taken in 1960 at Lake Arrowhead, but in 1963 the car was involved in a major accident that took out the entire front end. He loved that car so much he refused to part with it after the accident and it's been taken along with each family move since. It's still in his garage to this day waiting for restoration.

[this post was last edited: 11/7/2013-11:45]

 

[twintubdexter]

Anyone who appreciates Raymond Lowey is A-OK in my book.

A wonderful book available in paperback/soft-cover from a few sellers.

 

[rp2813]

Joe, that's my book!  I've had it since it was first published and refer to it often.  I particularly love his use of a poodle for scale against a giant Cadillac tail fin, and his design of the Lucky Stores yellow tile tower hits home, as we had one a few blocks from us when I was a kid -- you know the one I mean (see below).

 

Google observed Loewy's birthday a couple of days ago.  Who's right?

 

As for Studebakers, one of my car collector friends referred to the automatic transmissions on the Loewy models as "peanut butter" for their characteristic shifting, sort of winding out and then gently settling into the next higher gear.  You had to drive or ride in one to know what I'm talking about, so David perhaps you can relate.

 

I really like the later GT models, and would love to have one even though they aren't a true Loewy design.

 

[revvinkevin]

Raymond Loewy

<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span>

<span style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span>

<span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;">Born: November 5, 1893, Paris, France</span>

<span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;">Died: July 14, 1986, Monte Carlo, Monaco</span>

<span style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span>

 

[goatfarmer]

Also designed Studebaker's last "gasp", the Avanti.

 

I had a 53 Commander Starliner (the hardtop) many years ago. It was a fun car, always got stares when I was driving it. I remember a guy in an 80's Corvette pulled up at a light, he had never seen one, and wondered what it was!

 

[whirlcool]

One of our neighbors had a 53 Champion coupes. Black outside with a gold interior.
I was always going over to look at it. The owner always said it was broke. this would have been around 1957 or so. The car never moved from his driveway so I assumed that something was wrong with it. Eventually my father told me to stay away from the thing, I guess the neighbor complained to him. I guess the owner didn't want me getting to close to it to look at it. Eventually around 1962 or so it disappeared from their driveway never to be seen again.

A few months ago, I was driving through our subdivision and passed a house with a garage door open. In the garage was one of these Studebaker Champions, it looked to be a 1954 model. Unfortunately I didn't have time to stop and ask about it. Next time I see the garage door open, I will.

I imagine parts for those Studebakers are extremely difficult to come by.

And don't forget about all the corporate logo's that the Lowey team created! Exxon, Shell, U.S. Mail, Internatinal Harversterm, the Cotton logo and many, many more!

 

[twintubdexter]

Ralph,

Of course I remember those yellow tile Lucky markets. We shopped at the one that was on Lincoln Avenue in downtown Willow Glen. My brother once lived behind the one that used to be on Bascom slightly north of you.

 

[d-jones]

Ralph

My dad bought his 53 in 58 or 59, then wrecked it in the fall of 63. I was born in December the same year, so unfortunately I've never seen it running. All my life it's been in one garage or another with a banged up front end. As was mentioned earlier in the thread, parts for these cars can be a little tough to come by. So when I was out in Tucson(the area's a hotbed of vintage car junk yards) at the Bombardier service center years ago, I called around to some of the junk yards and was referred to a guy that only dealt in Studebakers. He had everything I needed to put my dads car back together, so I gladly paid the man and loaded up my truck with parts. They're now sitting in the garage next to the 53 Commander. 

 

[rp2813]

Ah, a Project!

The Loewy Studebakers have such a timeless design.  I'm surprised there aren't more of them out there, even though Studebaker wasn't one of the "Big Three" manufacturers.  It seems to me that there would be as much enthusiasm over these cars as there is for the '55 - '57 Chevies if parts were easier to come by. 

 

[runematic]

We (my brothers, my nephews, & myself) bought my dad a '61 Lark 2 door for his 70th birthday a few years ago. It's a 2 door, 6cyl, 3-on-the-tree.

At our old store where we still rent a storage garage, we have a 63 GT Hawk. It was a project car but it ran when we parked it about 20 years ago. Unfortunately during the Irene/Lee flooding we had, the car was under up to it's roof. There was nothing protecting the carb so I'm sure the 289 v8 is shot. Very depressing. We're going to drop a Studebaker v8 that we just bought from a customer of ours in the Lark sometime soon. So hopefully we can get some parts off the Hawk for use in the Lark. We love the Studes!!!

 

[hydralique]

When I was a small boy an aunt of mine drove a lovely '63 Hawk GT, black with red interior, V8 and four speed trans, a very pretty car indeed. Although the basic '53 body was a Loewy design, it was Brook Steven's masterful redesign for '63 that made the '63-'64 models possibly even prettier than the original. It's a shame that when Studebaker ceased US production after '64 and only made cars in Canada for the next two years that they didn't include the Hawk. In that case the Hawk would have used the Chevy small-block and six like the '65-'66 Lark.

 

[whirlcool]

I always thought that later year Hawks were heavily over chromed. But it was a sign of the times. In the 50's chrome ruled!

In that old TV show, Mr. Ed they used Studebakers as the cars and trucks in that show. In the episode that was on the other day there was a Lark, a Lark converible and a Studebaker pickup.

 

[goatfarmer]

I'm a life member of SDC, the Studebaker Drivers Club, there are a lot more parts available for Studes than you think.

 

[norgeway]

Studebaker V8

Studebaker V8s were good fast cars, I never heard anything bad about the trans. though, wasnt it just a basic Borg Warner unit similar to a Ford O Matic??..Buick had the slushy old Dynaflow.

 

[supersuds]

Yes, both Ford and Studebaker used Borg Warner automatics.

From 1950 through 1955, Studebaker used a design they collaborated on with B-W's Detroit Gear Division, which incorporated a torque converter, planetary gear set, and a cork friction clutch that locked up for direct drive in high, eliminating slippage.

Ford wanted to use it, but Paul Hoffman of Studebaker insisted on a year's exclusivity. Ford didn't wait and started using a simplified version made by the Warner Gear division of B-W that eliminated the lockup clutch.

By 1956, with sales dropping, Studebaker decided the Detroit Gear transmission was too expensive, and changed over to the Warner Gear trans, except on Golden Hawks, which used the big 352 Packard V8 and Packard Ultramatic Drive.

 

[runematic]

Here is the only shot I have of the post-flood Studebaker hawk.  You can see the water/oil line (there is a car repair garage next door & they had open drums of waste oil that got flooded out into everything) was right up to the mirror.  The garage slants down in so the water just built up inside there.

 

[whirlcool]

I can only imagine what the inside of that car smells like now. I think the only way to save it would be to strip everything (interior, wiring, switches, etc.) out of the car and start all over again. Massively expensive to do.