The image of HUDSON

RL Chilton

There is a photographer (colleague of my wife, Vicki's) that is interested in photographing the convertible when it is completed. Recently, he was getting the wrong idea about the photo shoot, when he mentioned zoot suits and pin-ups. Following is Vicki's response to his ideas:

Kind of made me proud to read it!


Just some things to think of if we have pictures taken of the convertible.

These ads reflect the character of the cars and the whole ambiance that those of us “Hudnuts” wish to capture with our cars. These automobiles are relics from a bygone era with values and morals that are hard to find these days. They were “country club” cars, owned and marketed to the upper middle class, especially families and women. The cars were distinguished, stately, reliable, and respectable. Hudson’s marketing wasn’t sexy, because the people who drove these cars weren’t the risqué. They were well-to-do moms and pops, hardworking, family oriented, church every Sunday, golf every weekend, manners-are-everything type of folk.

Hudsons were also great racers, driven by racers from that same segment of society mentioned above, but our Hudson’s racing character will be discretely masked under the hood, only to be revealed in her extraordinary performance and handling. Her looks, though, will be all elegance and refinement. Getting to ride in her will be a special occasion that we’ll probably even dress up a little for!

That’s why I’m thinking the Pinup and Zoot Suit looks wouldn’t quite be right. Pinups would have been too risqué for the women who drove these cars. While the men who owned these cars likely hung pinups on their walls while they fought in the war, they would have shielded their girls at home from such overt sexuality. And the Zoot Suit mentality would have been too rowdy. Again, some of the Hudson men of the 1950s may have been into Zoot Suits when they were younger, but by the 1950s, if they were buying Hudsons, they’d have likely graduated up to more traditional suit and ties. The outlaw gangster image would have been even more shunned by the respectable, law abiding, conservative Hudson crowd. Plus, pinups and zoot suits were really a fad of the 1940’s War Era. You’ve got to consider that car design didn’t really change at all during the 1940s, because all the automakers’ production got sucked into making planes and ships for the war effort. So, people hadn’t seen any new cars for about a decade. 1950’s era Hudsons were remarkable because they were dramatically new and exciting designs.

I know I’m likely overthinking this, but I’m protective of our Hudsons’ images and what they stand for, and truly, a picture tells a story. I want to make sure our car is part of the right story. 

Vicki

hudsontech

You tell 'em girl!!!!! Notice the ladies in the ads - dressed up as was customary back in those days. The photographer has to learn, like an historian, that you have to put your mind set in the period you are working in. You cannot put today's thinking into, say the 1940's or 1950's. Don't work.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

SuperDave

Very well stated..

onerare39

Yes... picture the Cleavers, Ward, June, Wally and Theodore "Beaver".

J Spencer

Excellant response!!

TwinH

Nice! This is the image that pops in my mind....

Hudson Grandpa

Musician all my life, and never wore a Zoot Suit. Always wore Tuxedos.. No zoot suit in this pic of me and my 1951. Ft.Sam Houston US Army summer of 1953, also one wife and a baby girl.. A typical Hudson Family in 1953. But my wife did wear a couple of those hats in that pic!! No Comment...

hudsontech

Zoot suits were popular within the African American, Chicano and Italian American communities during the 1940s. Really started with black muscians - zoot is generally regarded as being a derivative of suit.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN