George Walker, the flamboyant styling chief at the Ford Motor Company, called the 1959 Ford the best design of his tenure there. That’s worth a closer look.
George Walker
In November of 1957, Time magazine called him “the Cellini of Chrome.” George Walker (1896-1993) played a leading role in the design of the Ford Motor Company’s products, first as a consultant starting in 1949, then as vice president of styling from 1955 through 1961. That period saw a number of memorable Fords, Mercurys, and Lincolns, so it might be a little surprising to find that in his view, the best design of his time at the automaker was . . . the 1959 Ford.
We have to wonder if many enthusiasts of today would agree. To modern eyes, the ’59 Ford might seem chunky, gimmicky, and overdecorated. But the Ford was a product of its time, and it must be judged that way. It’s interesting to go back to ’59 and read the glowing reviews. At Car Life, Jim Whipple described the ’59’s exterior design as “clean, sharp, and well-balanced.” He went on: “The point is that the ’59 Ford’s looks are in excellent taste and easy to live with . . .styling has swung back, and happily so in my book, to the functional.”
Galaxie Town Victoria
And we can see Whipple’s point when we look again at the over-the-top General Motors products that year, or the towering tailfins of Virgil Exner’s Forward Look Chrysler products. In comparison, the Ford exterior (credited to Joe Oros as lead stylist) is downright restrained. And for what it’s worth, at the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair, the car was awarded a gold medal from the Comité Français des L’élegance of Paris, said to be a highly prestigious European style honor—not that we would know. (See the video here.)
Ranch Wagon
For 1959, the Ford passenger car lines were consolidated on a single 118-in wheelbase chassis and offered in three trim levels: Custom 300, Fairlane, and Fairlane 500. The innovative Skyliner hideaway-hardtop convertible was continued for a third and final year, while Ford, always aggressive in the station wagon segment, presented six different wagons, including the sporty two-door Del Rio and the wood-trimmed Country Squire. Except for the Skyliner, the Squire was the most expensive model in the ’59 lineup.
Then in February of 1959, four months after the initial ’59 rollout, Ford launched a new premium model, the Galaxie, with a thick-pillared formal roofline that emulated the Thunderbird. Despite the late introduction, the Galaxie became the top seller, outpacing the Fairlane and Fairlane 500 combined. Ford and Chevrolet ran in a virtual dead heat in sales that year at around 1.5 million units, with some accounts placing Dearborn on top. Ford had a winner in ’59, and George Walker approved, too.
George Walker styled the great ’39-’40 Nash, and the ’49 Ford which was to be the ’49 Nash – but as George Mason wouldn’t discuss postwar stylings, Walker sold the designs to Ford.
I think the 1959 Ford was a good looking car for its time. Today, I would probably choose the wild 1959 Chevrolet over it because it is so evocative of the era. But in ’59 I likely would have taken the Ford instead. I find the Plymouth/Dodge too heavy-handed, too ornamental. Some prefer the 1955-57 Fords but I view them as austere, plain-jane cars.
All things considered, I’d rather have a 1963 Galaxie.
If George Walker is the Cellini of Chrome at Ford, then Bill Mitchell must be the Picasso of GM Chrome, making Virgil Exner undoubtedly the Da Vinci of Chrysler Chrome! In terms of sheer mechanical composition, Mr. Exner is also the Stradivarius of Steel…
And by the time his last designs were produced, Harley Earl was undoubtedly the Jackson Pollock of chrome at GM.
Virgil Exner is the Magritte of Metal.
Indeed, just as René Magritte placed ordinary objects in impossible contexts, Mr. Exner’s “Flight-Sweep” deck lid is a perfect example of pure automotive surealism.
Available on various ’57-’61 Imperials, Chrysler, Desoto and Plymouth cars; thankfully, DODGE never offered a “toilet seat” on any production model…
In the context of 1959, the Ford was the cleanest of the Big Three. Even the Fairlane 500 and Galaxie were much more tasteful than the bat-wing Chevy or the overdone Plymouth. Observation, too: What had been the Del Rio Ranch Wagon in 1957-58 became the two-door Country Sedan for 1959. Not to mention the ’59 Ford, with some distinctive trim touches including a little extra chrome, a different grille, and even some daring two- and three-tone combinations, was a success in Canada as the Meteor Niagara, Rideau and Montcalm (their take on the Galaxie)…
Ford sold more Del Rios in 1957 than Chevrolet did with its Nomad in its three years of production. Yet nobody wants one today. The 1957 Ford model line outsold Chevrolet for the first time since 1935 but everyone wants a BelAir. I tell ya, I don’t get no respect.
IMO, he missed by a year; the Quicksilver is gorgeous in any time.
First pic….Same house used in the Thunderbird intro?
Yes. If you are a fan of Ford Motor Co. photos in this era, you will see the same settings cropping up again and again. -mcg