Raymond Loewy and me (with photo)

[Studebaker Wheel]

Back in 1977 Raymond Loewy contacted me with a request for some Avanti photographs for his Paris office. I had a very busy schedule at the time but I responded by sending 8 photos and indicated that he could keep what he wanted gratis if he would autograph the remainder and return them, which he did. For the past 25 years or so those autographed images were misplaced. Today they appeared. One of the 4 attached below. In addition in the same envelope with the photos was three hand written notes and the envelopes they came in. SERENDIPITY!

[Chris Pile]

Dick, you have the COOLEST stuff!

[BobPalma]

Whew; what a relief! I noted "with photo" in the Thread's Title, Dick, and was prepared for your proposal that we believe the masculine figure in the swimming pool is you. BP

[53k]

While not as personal as Richard's neat items, a number of us in the Washington, DC area had a nice Raymond Loewy experience quite some time back. In 1975 the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery had a three and a half month exhibition of Raymond Loewy's designs. They even had a new '75 Avanti II in the display. During the exhibition Raymond Loewy was scheduled to speak about his life and works. Members of the local Avanti club were invited to attend and my wife and I jumped at the chance. While probably tacky, I took my original first issue Avanti brochure and my large 1953 Studebaker brochure and asked him to sign them which he did. One member even had him autograph the inside of the glove compartment door off his '53. One person asked him what his greatest design was. His answer- "my daughter". His daughter and wife were also there.
The appearance of the '75 Avanti inside the art gallery was a story in itself. It was too wide to be rolled in on its own wheels so they turned it on its side on to special dollies and rolled it in that way then turned it upright again in the display (http://www.si.edu/Exhibitions/Detail...ond-Loewy-5242).

[SN-60]

The effort (and engineering) it took to get that Avanti ll inside the Renwick Gallery was truly impressive!

[Guido]

I remember seeing the autographed '53 at the Tutwiler meet in the fall of 1975. I seem to recall the owner as being Gary Johnson, I do remember he refused to tell someone how much he paid for it when asked.

[alaipairod]

Back in 1977 Raymond Loewy contacted me with a request for some Avanti photographs for his Paris office. I had a very busy schedule at the time but I responded by sending 8 photos and indicated that he could keep what he wanted gratis if he would autograph the remainder and return them, which he did. For the past 25 years or so those autographed images were misplaced. Today they appeared. One of the 4 attached below. In addition in the same envelope with the photos was three hand written notes and the envelopes they came in. SERENDIPITY!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]50573[/ATTACH]

Thank you so much for posting that great picture......That is you in the pool, right?......Keep em coming Richard.

[bezhawk]

He had a penchant for gold cars. I worked on his last car.

[Milaca]

Wonderful photo, Mr. Quinn! Do you have more autographed photos to share?

[Studebaker Wheel]

Here is another. This one includes, besides Loewy, Tom Kellogg and John Epstein, 3 of the 4 men involved in the original Avanti design.

[StudeNewby]

One member even had him autograph the inside of the glove compartment door off his '53. One person asked him what his greatest design was. His answer- "my daughter".

Class.
BTW, this piqued my interest, so...


"Raymond Loewy and his daughter Laurence enjoy a moment in 1982. Laurence was a prize-winning journalist who later headed the Raymond Loewy Foundation and served as CEO of Loewy Design. She died Oct 15, 2008, at age 55.

David Hagerman, the COO of Loewy Design says, "Laurence hoped RaymondLoewy.org would help introduce a new generation of design enthusiasts to her father."

http://www.wired.com/2008/12/gallery-loewy/

[jclary]

Enjoying the pics, Richard. I believe it was Tom Kellogg who came to one of our North Carolina Tri-State meets and shared with us some of his career experiences, with emphasis on his involvement in the Avanti project. It has been many years since that meet, so it could be that someone could correct my recall if I have conflated Toms experience with others.

If I recall correctly, Tom's main (Avanti design) responsibility was related to the interior. He explained how his toothpaste cap became the inspiration for the radio knobs, and the Avanti front seats were patterned (with slight modification) from an old Porsche seat he had removed from a hot rod at his home. He said he had been sitting on a wooden crate inside the "mock-up" that was very uncomfortable. He said that he got the idea to take the Porsche seat to work mainly because he figured it would be more comfortable than the wooden box he had been using. When the time came to design a seat, it was realized that the old Porsche seat already had dimensional proportions suitable for the space. A few tweaks, and thus...the Avanti seats.

There was also a stories regarding his work for Hudson, and also as an engineer designing tires. In addition, recollection of working in a weaponry "think tank" during WWII, and a rather entertaining story of an accidental encounter with Henry Ford. I'm not sure if my recall is all that accurate, but all in all, my memory is that he was gracious, dignified, and friendly to all who approached him.

[Studebaker Wheel]

John; Are you sure it wasn't Bob Doehler (Studebaker stylist) that you are thinking of? I do not believe Tom Kellogg had anything to do with the Avanti interior. However the story of the seat comes right from Bob Doehler who I knew well. I have good photos of both men (below).

[lschuc]

[Sdude]

I believe Tom Kellogg was too young to have worked for Hudson or during WWII.