PBS documentary about the Indiana-based car company, which started out making covered wagons in 1852.
Пікірлер: 104
@bettyscoggins77693 жыл бұрын
My Daddy had a 52 Studebaker truck . BEAUTIFUL !!!!! God what art it was.
@robertalbright76323 жыл бұрын
My dad bought a 1961 Studebaker rumble seat hawk. (. Only two were made. ). We still have it been to a lot of car shows in Michigan. Nov / 2020 🇺🇸
@russellhartwell54043 жыл бұрын
,, ,, I, "NEVER," SAW, # 1, !!,
@gmtegirl2 жыл бұрын
Really good documentary. My father told me there was a Studebaker dealer in my hometown which was a GM-town. He said the man who ran the dealer was surly and the cars had a number of quality issues (they appeared to jump back and forth across the road). It clearly wasn't just one thing that caused the end of Studebaker but a number of issues.
@sutherlandA13 жыл бұрын
I think they were a bit harsh on Packard especially compared to Studebaker. A healthier Packard essentially purchased the struggling Studebaker which once finalised had realised that their management hadn't been forthcoming about the dire situation in the company. Studebaker had to produce and sell 278,000 to break even and their cars and factories were in need of expensive update to merely bring them up to standard. Unfortunately what little dowry Packard had was quickly squandered and the whole company ceased to exist within a few years
@autocamping50573 жыл бұрын
Sad that such an industry has ended ,,, distinctive, beautiful and practical design!!!
@charleskaucic50473 жыл бұрын
Thank Chevrolet and ford and mass production.
@autocamping50573 жыл бұрын
@@charleskaucic5047 And Dodge, GMC
@600miles7 ай бұрын
30:17 I started collecting beer cans in 1971 in St Louis MO. I still have about 400 of them and now I have a beautiful '57 Silver Hawk.
@57Banjoman3 жыл бұрын
My old school buddy's dad drove Larks-we thought they were ancient even when they were new-compared to the GTO's, and Impalas-an interesting documentary-I liked the music choices as well-thank you Damian, for posting this!
@jakekaywell59723 жыл бұрын
Interesting. '60s Studebakers always struck me as a combination of the (then) modern and archaic, probably due to the financial realities that the automotive division had to work around. For instance, my '62 GT Hawk has crisp European styling and yet the old fender vents that had been on Studebaker coupes since 1953 are still on display.
@whatyoumakeofit66352 жыл бұрын
Seems like nobody ever wants to admit it but thats why the company failed. Their automotive styling was way out dated
@kirstenspencer36302 жыл бұрын
When I was a very young mechanic ( 1974 ) I had an older woman that had a limited edition LARK. In the early 1960's compact car racing developed a small following. A limited number of special competion modified Larks were built. They were the real deal. The owner knew it was dated style wise but fast as hell. White with yellow trim and an interior that had different color door panels. No sound deadining. My god, the cluch was soo heavy I could push it in, four speed and 327 Corvette motor. Huge front sway bar and springs that looked from a railcar, posi rear end. A tiger dressed up for a tea party. 1963 Lark. I'll still buy it.
@donolbers94463 жыл бұрын
The picture in the Wikipedia article on Kemmerer, Wyoming shows the old Studebaker dealership building. It is on the right with an Arctic Cat sign in front. There is also a sign from it in the Lincoln Co. Wyoming Museum, and 20 years ago it was not uncommon to see a few large Stude trucks parked around here. The 49 to 62 pickups are nice looking machines.
@dekelanson52803 жыл бұрын
I hate how they say that they made a few "token" cars in Canada. The plant in Hamilton Ontario was there since the 40's, and built cars until March of 66'. They played a big part for Studebaker, and It was just as devastating when it too closed up.
@arnepianocanada3 жыл бұрын
Well stated. That throwaway comment disregarded and derided a similarly devoted workforce.
@HarborLockRoad2 жыл бұрын
I had a hamilton built 65 cruiser...and it was a fine car! Thanks canada!
@Inkslinger033 жыл бұрын
We took a family road trip in 1962 from California to Michigan. Since my dad was a Studebaker fan, we drove by the Studebaker plant in South Bend, We were still driving by, when my dad said, "I can tell you that Studebaker is in trouble. That's the employee parking lot. Notice how hardly any of the cars are Studebakers. Those people don't have confidence in the product they are building." The union troubles had started a year or two earlier. He called it, two years before they closed. We were driving a new 1962 Lark sedan, which we loved. In all, my dad owned a series of a dozen Studebakers (but never owned a Hawk, to his regret), and did most of the maintenance himself. But my point is that he (and others) saw the end coming.
@jakekaywell59723 жыл бұрын
That hesitance is also a key part of why Studebaker (wisely, in my opinion) pulled out of the automotive industry entirely in 1966. It creates a self-fulfilling prophecy that's almost impossible to counteract. At least I do have myself a '62 GT Hawk with an unusual array of options. No power steering or brakes but Twin Traction and factory air conditioning!
@nygelmiller52934 ай бұрын
What a stunning car - the CONVERTIBLE Lark!
@alancaron9842 жыл бұрын
My uncle Bill was a truck driver in Milwaukee. As a kid, I remember him saying most of the cars that had ‘broken down’ while he was driving trucks were Studebackers.
@lloydholland95223 жыл бұрын
My dad almost worked for Studebaker for 10 years after World War II I believe they branched out way too many different areas but the one thing that made them prosperous and how they started by making vehicles for transportation the one thing that made them prosperous and the workers were happy but then they branched out in so many different areas and then they cut the one thing that made them practice in the beginning and I believe that was their downfall my dad went on to work for General Motors in 1955 for 30 years fight like hell in the Union and retired with dignity and honor I miss him so
@Inkslinger033 жыл бұрын
Lloyd - by "almost worked," did you mean that he was one of those union workers? They were semi-productive and helped bring the company down. There were other management problems too, but the unions were a drag on the company and did themselves no favors either.
@richardhenry73773 жыл бұрын
I wish they would do a documentary on Oil City Pa , when Quaker state , Pennzoil , Wolfs head left, killed this town!
@capriracer3512 жыл бұрын
Absolutely. The final nail in the coffin around here.
@dancalmpeaceful39033 жыл бұрын
My grandfather worked at Bendix for years and years and eventually retired from there......
@Irishfan2 жыл бұрын
This film was made in 1983. The said the Bokon family wasn't driving Studebaker's anymore. What they didn't tell you is that you coul drive down any street South Bend and see a Studebaker parked in driveways or in the street in front of at least one or more houses along the street. This lasted well into thr 90's.
@jamessawyer88894 жыл бұрын
I remember watching this when it aired in1983 because one item of mention was that the Toyota dealer on S Western Avenue used to be Studebaker on Western in Chicago because I have a 1966 Chicago auto show program & it was printed in that
@JClark-346953 жыл бұрын
The 1955 Packard was NOT ugly, at least in my opinion. The problem was that Packard tried too much, too quickly. All new OHV V8, new transmission, and an all-new torsion bar suspension with a complicated electric load-leveling system. You DON'T do all that in one year; you're just asking for trouble, and they got it.
@harrybriscoe79483 жыл бұрын
Sounds like the Edsel with all new engineering and all new kinks
@billolsen43603 жыл бұрын
I always thought Packards were great looking too. The 1950's just spelled the end of US independent passenger car makers. Kaiser/Fraser, Packard, Studebaker, Hudson, Willys all went down because GM, Ford, Chrysler had all the money to put in advertising and yearly restyling & that appealed, unless you where a Jeep fan.
@harrybriscoe79483 жыл бұрын
@@billolsen4360 Didn't Willy and Hudson end up in AMC then Chrysler ?
@martyzielinski24693 жыл бұрын
@@harrybriscoe7948 Hudson and Nash......
@Inkslinger033 жыл бұрын
The 55 Packard was a classy ride, with a lot of new features. Some of those features (like the Hill Holder and the Load Leveler) didn't appear on other cars for ten years after.
@user-ym7iz6pg3jАй бұрын
Studebaker always tried to move forward even though the odds were always against them that's why Studebaker is remembered and I do think that makes Studebaker a CHAMPION 😊
@jean-paulgrenon38313 ай бұрын
Yes ..soo true ..especially in the designs up to 1955……surprisingly I was twelve when my older brother purchased his first car in 1956 ….and I was totally disappointed ..in his choice until I saw his model the 1946 commander v8 …and was relived of the incredible turn around in design ..I use to call them ..STUPIDBAKER……up to the new design in 1956……that is my experience of this lethargic…make ……now history…
@JClark-346953 жыл бұрын
In the end, it was management's fault for letting the engineers and designers go, not spending enough on advertising, not supporting the dealers, not modernizing the plants, and not taking a firmer stance with the unions. But no one ever has the courage to lay blame where it lies: WITH MANAGEMENT!
@CH-pv2rz3 жыл бұрын
Bullshit... It was the Unions destroying the profits and driving costs up to unsustainable levels. Serves them right for losing their pensions.
@martyzielinski24693 жыл бұрын
@@CH-pv2rz AGREED! (for the most part. Management screwed up too)
@johnbecker52132 жыл бұрын
amen!!!!!
@johnbecker52132 жыл бұрын
@@martyzielinski2469 rat
@edwardkennedy99193 жыл бұрын
Elvis drove a studebaker.
@martyzielinski24693 жыл бұрын
Elvis drove LOTS of cars.....
@edwardkennedy99193 жыл бұрын
@@martyzielinski2469 yes I know I'm just saying that he drove studebakers,
@dillonsolanki4986 Жыл бұрын
Only the Hawk was selling at the end. And the Avanti had all kinds of orders but they couldn't produce them. Long live the Hawks, Avantis, and 53 & 54"s by Studebaker! Best designs!
@kevinbaker61682 жыл бұрын
Interesting; similar issues 50 years later in the American auto industry. Management issues, labor, market competition. They had a good car, but competition that was willing to change designs and features every year to capture a small bit of the market. Packard was and still is known as a prestige automobile, and Studebaker as an innovator. Both had strengths and weaknesses, but they weren't able to work on the strengths and overcome the weaknesses.
@santiagorubio8338 ай бұрын
Este fanático debería ver videos de la Carrera Panamericana.
@jeffgreen74995 ай бұрын
21:54 "Happy Days!" Tom Bosley(Mr. Cunningham"
@drstevenrey3 жыл бұрын
Let's cut to the chase. The cars looked old fashioned right out of the factory. The quality was not what you thought. The big three did all things better and cheaper and more appealing. A Studebaker, to me, is manned with a very old man with very long ears and does not signal a turn, crawling to the local malt shop.
@jakekaywell59722 жыл бұрын
Stuff and nonsense. Studebaker was known for its avant-garde styling, with the Avanti and Loewy Coupes being the best known post-war examples. The quality was also bulletproof, even during the Studebaker-Packard era. In the five years that I've owned my '62 GT Hawk, it has NEVER left me stranded.
@djtherock70622 ай бұрын
STUDEBAKER had the fastest production car in the 50's the Hawk wiith a supercharger and overdrive transmission and a 160mph speedometer the car would do every bit of it and the BEST body lines of its Era ahead of their time the big 3 where in the rear view mirror
@mitchflorida3 жыл бұрын
That's Perry White of the Daily Planet at 6:00.
@mikedrown27213 жыл бұрын
Yes....played by John Hamilton
@billolsen43603 жыл бұрын
Great Caesar's Ghost!
@jeffgreen74995 ай бұрын
A lot of Hollywood guys were in the 1953 movie, "The Studebaker Story". John Hamilton(Perry White) and fellows that were in many westerns, Myron Healey, Walter Coy, Trevor Bardette, Harry Carey Jr.
@jacobfeuerwerker54982 жыл бұрын
Studebaker's huge mistake was keeping James R. Nance of Packard as a manager. He was a terrible excuse for a human being. His mistakes destroyed Packard. I do not think the last 2 years of Packards were ugly with their new V8. Their last straight 8 were also beautiful. A Israeli performer later to become one of the world's most beloved performer, my second cousin, came back after studying with her husband for 2 years in NYC, with 2 of them, Patrician 1954 with the 149 wheelbase. I was dark blue & 1 was light blue. I first saw them when I was nearly 4 & remember them now that I'm nearly 71.
@jeffgreen74995 ай бұрын
Too much blame on Nance, not all his fault, he was doing his best to modernize Packard. I met him back in the 1980s along with Packard designers John Reinhardt and Dick Teague. They did not think he was a terrible person. For many years Cleveland State's business class was named The James J. Nance School of Business. He went into banking a few years after Packard and said his biggest regret was that wished he'd gone into banking before he went to Packard because banks were the key to get funds to capitalize.
@jamessmyth59493 жыл бұрын
"Studebaker didn't have the dealer network and the reputation of Studebaker dealers was that their dealers wouldn't deal, they would rather sell 5 cars at a profit of $500 each than 25 cars at $100 each". They also ordered cars in 1s and 2s not in large inventories. Sure sounds to me like Studebaker may have progressed from selling horse drawn carriages to gasoline automobiles but their business model and practices didn't follow along with it. They relied on the same outdated model from back in their horse drawn carriage days. No wonder they couldn't compete when things began to shift in the competitive automotive industry landscape and also the expectations of buyers who at the end of the day decided that Studebaker wasn't a company that could deliver products that met their ever increasing expectations.
@shobud75613 жыл бұрын
You just said the very same words as the guy in the documentary !
@Inkslinger033 жыл бұрын
Here's a question of Studebaker lore that someone must be able to answer: In California, anyway, the Studebaker dealerships we visited were owned by retired FBI and OSS agents. There has to be a reason. Who knows the story?
@PAHighlander243 жыл бұрын
There may be a lot of justified finger-pointing for the failure, it appears they had too few models. The only family car they had was the Lark. They were successful when Rambler was their only competition in economy cars, the Big 3 jumped into that market. Rambler managed to survive with 3 family car models for different market segments, and the 1960 Rambler American looked very similar to the Lark. There just wasn’t enough market share in small economy cars to compete with the Rambler, Ford Falcon, Plymouth Valiant, Chevy Corvair and VW Beetle. It was inevitable and sad that Studebaker went under.
@Inkslinger033 жыл бұрын
The Studebaker Museum in South Bend sells a book that tells the whole sad story of mismanagement. When the founder "Studebaker Johnny" died, the management team lost focus. That's always a terminal condition for a company.
@jakekaywell59723 жыл бұрын
@@Inkslinger03 Essentially, the Chevrolet-Ford Price War of 1953 as well as Studebaker's own bungling of the demand for their Loewy-Bourke coupes (80% vs. 20% for the similarly-styled sedans) doomed them. After that point, everything else delayed the inevitable.
@allenatkins2263 Жыл бұрын
What is it about the 80s that makes people wish they could go back there?
@gojoe28332 жыл бұрын
That 2 door Grand Marquis at 35:38 is a rare collectible car!
@jvarela96510 ай бұрын
Studebaker began to decline in the 30s. Before the crash of 29 Studebakers were premium cars, Look up 1929 Studebaker President. The post WWII Studebakers were very mediocre cars, although the HAWK was beautiful car.
@here_we_go_again25713 ай бұрын
*The late 1940's through the early1960's was a great time for most in the USA, to grow up,* *and to be alive!* *WW2 was over.* USA and its allies were victorious in both in Europe and in the Pacific. (The GI's who returned wanted to have a better society -- "All boats rise" was the underlying theory) *The Cold War* had begun (and there had been a victory in the Berlin Blockade/Airlift 1948--1949) *Korean War* (1950--1953) did not last long and ended in a draw (armistice, no peace deal) *Cuban Missile Crisis* (13 days ... 16-28 October 1962) had ended peacefully *The Vietnam War* (1955 - 1975) had not, yet, heated up (with American troops until 1961--1963). *Employment was high, unemployment and inflation were low* during most of these years. (The offshoring and "stagflation" that plagued the 1970's onward had not begun). *By the end of the 1960's the Civil Rights movement was bearing good fruit.* [It had begun post-American Civil War (1860--1865) and was revitalized during WW2 and in the 1950's with integration in the military and school integration -- promoted by President Eisenhower.]
@user-ym7iz6pg3jАй бұрын
Conway Twitty Owned A Studebaker
@billolsen43603 жыл бұрын
Hawk GT - Class on 4 wheels
@andreabreider707111 ай бұрын
Seeing a documentary about your family's history is completely bizarre.
@kiwiguy47642 жыл бұрын
Thats funny south bend tribune is printed in grand rapids Michigan now
@williampratt81162 жыл бұрын
It was Studebaker in name only. The original family had either died or moved on.
@jakekaywell59722 жыл бұрын
Does that discredit everything the Corporation did after it was reorganized in 1934 then?
@robertfeinberg7487 ай бұрын
Failure = George Romney.
@katearnott89804 жыл бұрын
1939 commanderstudebaker
@jimstine75437 ай бұрын
Our government is gar less than they promised.
@santiagorubio8332 жыл бұрын
Este Sr. es un fanático que no sabe mucho de autos.
@shealtielanthony46672 жыл бұрын
35:29 that guy just kiss three women...?? wonder how they are related...??
@wendellworth3532 жыл бұрын
STUDEBAKER...Americas "YUGO! If you drove one for any distance, it tried to "unbuild" itself.
@jakekaywell59722 жыл бұрын
Stuff and nonsense. While a few valid criticisms can be leveled against Studebakers, reliability simply isn't one of them. Not even during the Studebaker-Packard era would you have gotten a lemon. My '62 GT Hawk will attest to that.
@daveat1912 жыл бұрын
I was 20 in 1961 and car hungry. In my opinion Studebaker failed for one main reason, the style of their cars sucked. Nobody wanted one.
@jakekaywell59722 жыл бұрын
Not particularly. The 1953 Chevrolet-Ford price war crippled Chrysler and crushed the Independents, with Studebaker being hit the hardest by far. They tried making the '53 platform work as long as possible, with mostly good results. The Lark in particular is a masterclass in good taste and restraint. A far cry from the visually confused parade floats that Cadillac and Imperial were putting out in the same era.
@CharlesCoderre-yv1cu2 жыл бұрын
totally agreed-every one was a rolling abortion
@jvolstad3 жыл бұрын
1952 was the start of the Korean War.
@dekelanson52803 жыл бұрын
The Korean war started in 1950, then ended in 53' (Though technically, it never really ended)
@keithkowack9373 жыл бұрын
Stude a baker ?
@thekekronomicon5903 жыл бұрын
It really goes to show how tremendously you fukt up when 5 japanese/korean car companys can turn a profits/build factorys where you can't and you closed your only factory
@mikeskidmore67543 жыл бұрын
They had a Factory in Canada and Chicago too ..
@PhyuckYew2 жыл бұрын
As a black man. I don't want to relive the 50's and 60's. 😂
@here_we_go_again25713 ай бұрын
If you lived in the South it was bad. But in the industrialized North there were jobs for just about everyone. Blacks who arrived in the North post WW1 and during WW2, had the advantage of good inner-city school systems that they lacked in the South. Also Black parents at the time did not embrace a culture that was counterproductive; or that glorified crime. The parents were active in their churches and a great deal of respect was given to Blacks who had become educated in the sciences, medicine, law and also religious leaders. At the time, overall out-of- wedlock births were lower for Blacks than in many immigrant neighborhoods Out of wedlock births of a group is a good ("shorthand" /"quick") indicator of the social stability within a group. At least within groups that comprise the USA. .
@user-ym7iz6pg3jАй бұрын
Studebaker always tried to move forward even though the odds were always against them that's why Studebaker is remembered and I do think that makes Studebaker a CHAMPION 😊
@user-ym7iz6pg3jАй бұрын
Studebaker always tried to move forward even though the odds were always against them that's why Studebaker is remembered and I do think that makes Studebaker a CHAMPION 😊
@user-ym7iz6pg3jАй бұрын
Studebaker always tried to move forward even though the odds were always against them that's why Studebaker is remembered and I do think that makes Studebaker a CHAMPION 😊