The Art and Color of Harley Earl
What emerged as the LaSalle in 1927 is widely regarded as the beginning of modern American automotive styling. Its designer, Harley Earl, launched a 30 year career as General Motors' Vice President of the new Art & Color Studios, that guides General Motors' designs today. Built in General Motors of Canada after Cadillac in 1923 to 1935 and Olds 1920 to 1969 LaSalle was built here from 1927 to 1935.
Prior to the LaSalle, automobiles essentially followed a set pattern, with design changes set by engineering needs. The Ford Model T evolved over its extended run, but ever so slightly, making a 1927 Model T almost identical to a 1910 Model T.
Harley Earl, who had been hired by the Cadillac General Manager, Lawrence P. Fisher, conceived the LaSalle not as a junior Cadillac, but as something more agile and stylish. Influenced by the rakish Hispano-Suiza roadsters of the time, Earl's LaSalle emerged as a smaller, yet elegant counterpoint to Cadillac's larger cars, unlike anything else built by an American automotive manufacturer.
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