Motorama
Encyclopedia
Auto show
An auto show, or motor show, is a public exhibition of current automobile models, debuts, concept cars, or out-of-production classics. It is commonly attended by automobile manufacturers. Most auto shows occur once or twice a year...
staged by GM
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
from 1949 to 1961. These automobile extravaganzas were designed to whet public appetite and boost automobile sales with displays of fancy prototypes, concept vehicles and other special or halo models
Halo effect
The halo effect is a cognitive bias whereby one trait influences another trait or traits of that person or object. This is very common among physically attractiveness...
. Motorama grew out of Alfred P. Sloan
Alfred P. Sloan
Alfred Pritchard Sloan, Jr. was an American business executive in the automotive industry. He was a long-time president, chairman, and CEO of General Motors Corporation...
's yearly industrial luncheons at New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's Waldorf Astoria
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
The Waldorf-Astoria is a luxury hotel in New York. It has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York City. The first, designed by architect Henry J. Hardenbergh, was on the Fifth Avenue site of the Empire State Building. The present building at 301 Park Avenue in Manhattan is a...
, beginning in 1931. They were almost invariably held in conjunction with the New York Auto Show, that for many years was held traditionally in the first week of January.
1949
After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the first show, Transportation Unlimited Autorama, was staged again at the Waldorf Astoria, in January 1949. Between the New York City venue and the Boston extension, nearly 600,000 people saw the show. Seven "special" Cadillacs were exhibited including, inter alia, a Series 61
Cadillac Series 61
The Fisher-bodied Series 61 used a wheelbase. It was available as a club coupe or sedan. All Cadillacs shared the same 346 in³ L-head V8 in 1939, with power at 135 hp and rising to 150 hp for 1941.-Series 63:...
coupe and a Series 62
Cadillac Series 62
The Series 62 was a series of cars produced by Cadillac, designed to replace the Series 61 in 1940. It remained in production through 1964, having been renamed Series 6200, when it was replaced by the Cadillac Calais name.-1940–1941:...
sedan that were standard except for a special paint finish; also shown were The Caribbean, the Embassy, and the Fleetwood Coupe de Ville, all built on the Series Sixty Special
Cadillac Sixty Special
The Sixty Special name has been used at Cadillac to denote a special model since the 1938 Bill Mitchell-designed Series 60 derivative. Although the 1938 model began in Cadillac's lowest price range, soon the Sixty Special name would be synonymous for some of Cadillac's most luxurious...
chassis.
1950
During the 1950 show, more than 320,000 visitors admired the Cadillac DebutanteCadillac Debutante
The Cadillac Debutante was exhibited at the Chicago Auto Show as a concept car in 1950. The interior is upholstered in leopard skin, has a 24-karat gold instrument panels, and 24-karat gold fittings. At $35,000, it was claimed to be Cadillac most luxurious car ever at the time. However, it never...
, a special convertible trimmed in leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
skins. There was no Autorama or Motorama in 1952. Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
celebrated its Golden Anniversary (50 years of production) in 1952, and two show cars were on display at various venues around the country: the Cadillac Townsman, a custom Series Sixty Special sedan, and the Cadillac Eldorado
Cadillac Eldorado
The 1953 Eldorado was a special-bodied, low-production convertible . It was the production version of the 1952 El Dorado "Golden Anniversary" concept car, and borrowed bumper bullets from the 1951 GM Le Sabre show car...
special convertible that went into limited production in 1953.
1953 and 1954
The show officially became known as Motorama when it began to travel around the country in 1953. That year more than 1.4 million visitors saw it; Motorama's opening day in New York drew 45,000 visitors. There was a revue, with orchestra, singers, and dancers. Exhibited at this venue were the Buick WildcatBuick Wildcat
In 1966 a one-year-only Wildcat "Gran Sport Performance Group" package could be ordered by selecting the "A8/Y48" option. Two engine choices were available. The single carb 425 CID/340 hp V8 was included in the base package price but a dual-carb set-up was also available at extra cost...
, Pontiac La Parisienne, Oldsmobile Starfire
Oldsmobile Starfire
Oldsmobile Starfire are automobiles produced by the Oldsmobile division of General Motors in two generations from 1961–1966 and 1975–1980. The Starfire nameplate was also used for the 1954–1956 Ninety- Eight series convertibles, and all 1957 Ninety-Eight series models. 1961 was the first year for...
, Chevrolet Corvette
Chevrolet Corvette
The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car by the Chevrolet division of General Motors that has been produced in six generations. The first model, a convertible, was designed by Harley Earl and introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car. Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after...
, Cadillac Orleans
Cadillac Orleans
The Cadillac Orleans was a concept car designed by Cadillac for the 1953 auto show circuit. It was the first four door hardtop concept. The hardtop design eliminated the traditional B-pillar found on most cars of the era. Powered by a Cadillac V8 engine with an output of , the Orleans was never put...
and Le Mans
Cadillac Le Mans
The Cadillac Le Mans was a concept car developed by Cadillac in 1953. It was named for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France, in which Cadillac competed in 1950. The design was a low-profile , two-seat, fiberglass-bodied roadster. This concept showcased Cadillac's first wrap-around windshield...
.
More than 1.9 million visitors attended the show in 1954; it started on January 26 in the Waldorf Astoria, New York. On display were the experimental Oldsmobile F88 and Cutlass
Cutlass
A cutlass is a short, broad sabre or slashing sword, with a straight or slightly curved blade sharpened on the cutting edge, and a hilt often featuring a solid cupped or basket shaped guard...
, Buick Wildcat II, Chevrolet Nomad
Chevrolet Nomad
The Chevrolet Nomad was a station wagon model made off and on from 1955 to 1972, and a Chevy Van trim package in the late 1970s and early 1980s, produced by the Chevrolet Division of General Motors...
station wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
, General Motors Firebird XP-21 and Pontiac Bonneville Special
Pontiac Bonneville Special
The Pontiac Bonneville Special is a purpose-built concept car unveiled at the General Motors Motorama in 1954, the first 2-seater sports car Pontiac ever produced. Designed by renowned designer Harley J. Earl and hand built by Homer C. LaGassey Jr...
, Cadillac El Camino, Cadillac La Espada and Cadillac Park Avenue, all featuring fiberglass
Fiberglass
Glass fiber is a material consisting of numerous extremely fine fibers of glass.Glassmakers throughout history have experimented with glass fibers, but mass manufacture of glass fiber was only made possible with the invention of finer machine tooling...
bodies.
1955 and 1956
The 1955 show dates were New York (January 20–25), Miami (February 5–13), Los Angeles (March 5–13), San Francisco (March 26 to April 3), Boston (April 23 to May 1). Exhibited at these venues were the Buick Wildcat III, Chevrolet Bel Air NomadChevrolet Nomad
The Chevrolet Nomad was a station wagon model made off and on from 1955 to 1972, and a Chevy Van trim package in the late 1970s and early 1980s, produced by the Chevrolet Division of General Motors...
, Cadillac LaSalle II roadster and sedan, and Cadillac Eldorado Brougham.
In 1956 over 2.2 million visitors attended. The dates were New York City (January 19–24), Miami (February 4–12), Los Angeles (March 3–11), San Francisco (March 24-April 1), Boston (April 19–29). Featured cars included Buick Centurion
Buick Centurion
The Buick Centurion was sold by the Buick division of General Motors from 1971 through 1973, replacing the Buick Wildcat as the sporty rendition of Buick's full-size car. The Centurion name was inspired by a Buick concept car, that name coming from the professional officer in the Roman Army...
, General Motors Firebird II, the Oldsmobile Golden Rocket, Pontiac Club de Mer
Pontiac Club de Mer
The Pontiac Club de Mer was a purpose-built, concept car that was unveiled at the General Motors Motorama in 1956 to celebrate GM's commitment to futuristic design...
, Cadillac Eldorado Brougham and Eldorado Brougham Town Car. Fans of Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
will recognize the 1956 show as the Motorama featured in the short film Design for Dreaming
Design for Dreaming
Design for Dreaming is a musical sponsored film about a woman who dreams about a masked man taking her to the 1956 General Motors Motorama at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and Frigidaire's "Kitchen of the Future." The entirety of the dialogue is sung, though the actors...
.
No shows were held for the next two years. In 1957, however, Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
did display a couple of show cars at various venues. These were the Cadillac Director and the Eldorado Brougham town car of the previous year. Also, in 1958, a special Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible toured various automobile shows; it was equipped with a rain sensor
Rain sensor
A rain sensor or rain switch is a switching device actuated by rainfall. There are two main applications for rain sensors. The first is a water conservation device connected to an automatic irrigation system that causes the system to shut down in the event of rainfall...
designed to automatically raise the top and all window glass, in case of a rain shower.
1959-1961
The "1959" Motorama was held from October 16–22, 1958, at the Waldorf Astoria, New York City, before moving on to Boston. Shown in these two east coast cities were General Motors Firebird III and the Cadillac CycloneCadillac Cyclone
The Cadillac Cyclone is a concept car built in 1959 by the Cadillac Division of General Motors. The Cyclone was never mass-produced as a production model.-Overview:...
.
The final Motorama show was held in 1961 in New York , San Francisco and Los Angeles. More than one million visitors attended.
More than 100 trucks were needed to transport Motorama shows around the country, each arriving at a precise time and in a given order. Cars and simultaneous revues were displayed on lifting, revolving platforms known as "grass-hoppers".
A total of 10.5 million visitors saw Motorama shows between 1949 and 1961.
A Touch of Magic
A Touch of Magic
A Touch of Magic is a musical sponsored film.The film begins with a designer at the drawing board, daydreaming about a 1920s couple who travel to the Middle Ages; the Man saves the Woman from a wizard and a dragon, only to abruptly discover that they are all performing for an audience in the 1960s...
was the official film for the 1961 Motorama.