Posted By Margery Krevsky on May 26, 2009

The “Goddess of Speed” concept has been part of automotive marketing since the creation of wheels. Early marketing efforts took this visual concept and made it part of car culture.

The world’s most recognizable hood ornament “The Spirit of Ecstasy” is the official ornament of Rolls-Royce created in 1911. Almost 100 years later it remains on vehicles today. In 2000 Rolls Royce introduced a retraceable “Ecstasy” that slides into a well with a steel plate overhead automatically when the engine is shut off, thereby preventing theft. The sculptor Charles Robinson Sykes used a favorite model, Eleanor Velso Thornton as his muse and inspiration for the statue. She was a glamorous woman of the time and so began the tradition of goddesses as hood ornaments. As the Rolls Royce website comments:”…the spirit of ecstasy, who had selected road travel as her supreme delight and has alighted on the prow of a Rolls Royce car to revel in the freshness of the air and the musical sound of her fluttering draperies”.

“The Spirit of Ecstasy” – Rolls Royce – The World’s Most Recognizable hood Ornament. Photo: Steve Purdy, Shunpiker Productions

In 1927 the Packard Motor Co. hired the Marion Morgan Dancers to promote the Packard 343 Series Eight. The troupe danced around the United States at auto shows and events. Then they took the show to London appearing at the famous variety show Mecca, the Palladium. The group specialized in interruptive Greek movement and was part of the modern dance focus started by Isadora Duncan. The Packard was the star, but the power of a new dance movement enticed the public.

“Damsel of the Dance”, Marion Morgan Dancer atop a Packard 343 Series Eight
Photo: National Automotive History Collection at Detroit Public Library

The Graham used a model in a Roman-inspire dress and winged tiara to draw attention at the National Automobile Sow in New York’s Central Palace in 1938. The “Sharknose” Graham was an architectural beauty and drew many admirers at the show.

 

 

The Graham – 1938 – New York
Photo: National History Collection at Detroit Public Library

 

 

Hood ornaments have adorned automobiles for decades, ye this sequin-gowned mermaid created a real life version to mesmerize the multitudes at the Detroit Auto Show in 1968 posed atop the new Plymouth Barracuda. Sirens with an irresistible song have dominated folklore for centuries, ever since Homer’s ancient epic, The Odyssey, was first told around 800 B.C. Auto shows use real images to express the magical qualities of a car. The era of auto Sirens has created a bonding link between the promise of motoring excellence and the personal ownership of a dream.

 

 

The Mermaid atop a Plymouth Barracuda
Photo: National Automotive History Collection at Detroit Public Library

 

In 1985 the now defunct Michigan Woman Magazine, initiated by published Glenda Greenwald, wife of the Chrysler executive, Gerald Greenwald, posed model, Larry Weathers, atop a red Chevrolet Corvette for its’ fall cover story on selling cars to women. The goal was to prompt controversary about the way women reacted to marketing that was geared to them; it was asked if women sought sex symbols as bait for car sales. The issue sold out completely.

 

The Man-Hood Ornament on the cover of The Michigan Woman Magazine, Oct/Nov 1985
Used with permission by The Michigan Woman editor Sue McDonald

 

Visualization, dreams and the allure of the cars are part of past, present and future marketing techniques for the auto industry. The use of the human hood ornament has a history of classic sculpture, the arts, comedy, and image of what the car means to us and our lives. We put ourselves and our fantasies on top always controlling the wind and the direction our lives take on the road and in life.

Margery Krevsky is the author of “Sirens of Chrome”, www.sirensofchrome.com
Maureen MacDonald, researcher

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