JAMES NANCE: THE RIGHT MAN ARRIVES TOO LATE James Nance would become Packard’s president on May 1, 1952. By then, the image of Cadillac as the prestige American automobile was cemented in public perception. On November 5, 1953, a new Broadway production opened at the Belasco Theatre in New York City: “The Solid Gold Cadillac.” …
Fin Tales is chatty, engaging, and easy to read. Written by John Smith about his experiences as General Manager of Cadillac, Smith’s story is one of rescuing the Cadillac brand from what appeared to be its certain demise, first by pushing for introduction of the Escalade against General Motors’ foolish “brand management” strategy and then…
One hundred years ago, many automobiles were produced from standardized components purchased from others, rather than from components manufactured in house by the automobile company. Comprising 25% of the new car market in 1916, these were called “assembled cars.” Production costs drove most assembled cars from the market during the 1920’s. None survived the onset…
(This is Part Two of a post begun at Part One, which you may wish to read now, if you have not already done so.) Moon was the second of three failing car companies that killed the Ruxton. The Historic Vehicle Association profile of Moon says it was “faced with dwindling profits and further resistance…
Reviled as the man who killed Kissel, Archibald Moulton Andrews also is blamed for the destroying Moon and Hupmobile in an ultimately futile quest to build his dream car, the Ruxton. Writing for Hemmings Classic Car and Hemmings.com, author Jim Richardson called Andrews “a song-and-dance man who fancied himself a carmaker,” but “knew nothing about…