Сообщение Ford Mustang on the Empire State Building, October 1965 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>
How to lift a Ford Mustang to the observation deck of a 103-story Empire State Building? Note that the skyscraper, built-in 1931, does not have freight elevators. You gonna find the answers if you want to create the most successful ad campaign of that year.
Ford Mustang + Empire State Building = Marketing!
Robert Liery was vice president of the Empire State skyscraper when he made an appointment with William Benton, product promotion manager at the auto giant Ford.
Henry Ford established a car production cycle that the world admired. He organized the beneficial employment system. Ford managers learned not to miss marketing opportunities.
The plan was to benefit both the Empire States Building and the Ford Mustang. This bald marketing move had to raise the visits to the skyscraper and boost sales of the automaker. Benton agreed immediately. Very soon, Ford engineers began to carefully examine the Empire State Building, measuring doors, halls, and elevators. They needed accurate elevator data to understand how to transport the car to the observation deck.
Finally, Ford engineers pondered how to disassemble the 4.5 meters-long Mustang, so have a way to assemble it again on the roof.
Operation ‘Advertisement’
Everything was ready by October 1965. The operation took less than an hour. The engine, gearbox and propeller shaft were removed from the Mustang. The car was cut into four parts, each of which fit the elevator of a skyscraper. Then engineers connected parts using a pin system.
At 11.00, helicopters with photojournalists were already circling over the Empire State Building. The photographs hit the front pages of all newspapers within a few hours.
At about 4.30 p.m. the same day, Ford workers disassembled a car again and transported it to the ground.
The success of the advertising campaign was tremendous: Ford sold 607,568 Mustangs in 1966. It was a record!
We cannot limit ourselves to one photo. Take a look at other pictures that immortalize the process of lifting the Ford Mustang to the observation deck of the Empire State Building.
Disassembling the Ford Mustang before lifting it on the top.
It seems like this car misses some parts
That’s how the car parts in the elevator looked like.
Сообщение Ford Mustang on the Empire State Building, October 1965 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>Сообщение Pulitzer prize photography: Ford Strikers Riot, 1942 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>
Milton E. Brooks captured his Ford Strikers Riot in April of 1941 and received his Pulitzer prize for a year later. This photo was the very first to win the Pulitzer in the Photography category. This category existed from 1942 till 1965.
The first strike in Ford history
The story of this photo starts with a single layoff of the employee at the Ford plant in Detroit. Henry Ford just received his Honor Cross from the Nazis, the economy grew, and it seemed like the Great Depression was in the past. Although, people still remembered its hard times painfully reacting on firing people for no or little reason. That was the case of pre-war April of 1941.
Read more: All Pulitzer Winning Photos (1942-1967)
The group of Ford workers agreed to participate in picket and calling everyone to stop working and join the strike. ‘Ford Strikers Riot’ photo captured the moment when strikers assaulted the worker who tried to pass through them. Interestingly, there was advice from the City Police Department not to try and access the building until the strike will settle down. So it was a moment when the confrontation with the protesters became fiery. Ford strikers stunned the man with an unexpected punch, and the fight began. In the photo, the break-through man is attempting to block the blows, covering his head and face with his coat. Picketers caused some severe damage to this unknown man. He had to get to the plant hospital for immediate treatment, as there were symptoms of concussions.
A miracle moment of ‘Ford Strikers Riot.’
Ford employees’ strike attracted a lot of public attention. The crowd gathered around the plant building where picketers were protesting. Local newspaper Detroit News photographer Milton E. Brooks was among the observers. Milton had a nickname “One Shot Milton” for his excellent stilled moment pictures. He operated a challenging type of camera that took several seconds to reload itself before the next shutter. Here’s why Milton E. Brooks had to select his capture moment carefully.
Milton wasn’t the only cameraman on that day. But while other reporters focused on the picket line, Brooks stayed ready to capture the conflict situation between the protesters and the worker trying to enter. When the action began, Brooks drew the camera from his pocket, pressed the shutter, and quickly disappeared in the crowd. He saw that protesters already went ballistic, and were ready to assault anyone who opposed them. The images could trigger unnecessary aggression. “Those guys seemed to be ready to kill me just to get my camera and waste that picture.”
Milton recalled that he was afraid that someone captured the same or almost-the-same image. He hurried back to the newspaper office and pushed the image to the next-day publication. After publication, the photo “Ford Strikers Riot” won Milton Brooks, the first Pulitzer Prize in photography in 1942.
Noteworthy, the father of Milton Brooks was also a newspaper reporter. He worked at The Detroit News from 1928 to 1953. Afterward, he became a commercial photographer.
Check out the stories of other outstanding Pulitzer winning photography:
The Saigon Execution by Eddie Adams
The Last Stand of Salvador Allende
Сообщение Pulitzer prize photography: Ford Strikers Riot, 1942 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>