I’m ok with all the fake backgrounds they used in these publicity shots, but this one is going a bit too far. Nothing but a roll of blue heavy paper? And where are they supposed to be? The new canoe canal with curbs? With those palms, I assume Hawaii, but it’s not working for me.
And who ever saw (or bought) a Nomad in this color combo? And why did the take away that awesome full rear wheel cutout that made the ’55 Nomad even that more distinctive?
OK, I’m done ranting now.
Your choice: ’56 Chevy Nomad…..or ’56 Ford Parklane?
The ’56 Ford Parklane isn’t bad either. Too bad Ford dropped the nameplate for the Del Rio Ranch Wagon in the ’57 model year althought Mercury recycled the name in the next decade.
“Mercury recycled the name in the next decade.”
It didn’t even take Mercury that long. The Mercury Park Lane (two words) made its debut in 1958!
Nomad. Just on that raked B pillar. Backed up by the SBC over the Y block lump.
The man is standing up through a hole in the canoe. Or more likely he was overlaid with a transparency.
This shade of green was popular for the cheaper ’55 and ’56 Chevys. Bel Airs usually had a lighter turquoise and white.
Now that I looked at it again, I think you’re right. He’s standing, not sitting!
Looks to me like he is kneeling, as one would in less than ideal water 🙂
Both paddlers holding their paddles well, and in a lovely cedar canvas canoe. Can’t fault anything about it except for the lack of water .
Alistair
I’d agree, the set producer likely had been to summer camp and knew their way around a canoe. There’s nothing wrong here at all The paddles are held properly and, yes kneeling when in the stern position is appropriate in many situations.
Are we sure he’s not kneeling? That was how I was taught to “sit” in a canoe.
I agree, Paul. The one distinctive styling cue that the 1955 Nomad offered, eliminated for the 1956 model. I remember sitting in a barber chair at 7 years old, seeing a 1955 Nomad roll down the street, and thinking to myself, that there was something special about that car. I’ve been a fan of the ’55 from that time forward.
“And why did the take away that awesome full rear wheel cutout that made the ’55 Nomad even that more distinctive?”
Distinctive as in Exner’s 55 Imperial. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery .
“And who ever saw (or bought) a Nomad in this color combo? ”
I’ll bet more people than we think. It’s actually interesting that the advertising people (who usually had a pretty good read on what was popular or attractive) picked this color for the shot, out of a wide range of choices. I will confess, however, that I have never seen one painted this way. But then the number of original Nomads I can ever recall seeing out in the wild is approximately zero.
Who ever *restored* a Nomad in this color combo? Nobody ever. 🙂
I don’t think the color combo is so bad. It would certainly be a unique choice for a restoration.
And although the ’56 is my least favorite Shoebox, I wouldn’t kick that Nomad out of my garage.
There was a ’57 in my neighborhood when I was a kid, quite shabby, which later on got a Perkins diesel, that I think had its original finish of a two tone dark metallic green with an ivory upper body. Of course, the paint was in such a condition that the real colors might have been somewhat different
Despite the machines’ best efforts to include popular human interests such as cars, beautiful scenery, and outdoor sports, technological limitations doomed early iterations of the Matrix to failure.
.
Excellent!
The ´65 was always my favourite tri-five Chevy, regardless of the body style.
And whats wrong with the color combo?
it should say ´56
Why surround a blue-green and white car with blue, green, and white? Didn’t they want the car to stand out and catch the eye? Isn’t that Advertising 101? I’ve complained about this before, but I don’t understand these professionals’ choices. The stupid canoe on blue paper shouldn’t be the star of the show. Is the guy without legs wearing a shooting jacket?
A full wheel opening would have gotten too close to the curved trim. After an image search, I’d say the full opening looks better with wider than stock wheels.
My worn out ’56 150 2 dr. sedan originally WAS that shade of metallic green when I bought her for $140 1 Feb, 1970.. Not for long however! It became a ’56 (?) Studebaker coppery gold, then a Cadillac Firemist Medium blue and finally ’72 Chevy Mojave Gold.
Definitely should never have sold that ’56! 🙁 DFO
Id say there wasnt a full wheel cutout because it would have interfered with the 56 style side trim. Still the 55 looks better both for the full cutout and the cleaner trim.
It almost looks like they’re paddling (sic) in front of a billboard of the car.
Or a mash up of World’s Fair Motorama and Disney’s “it’s a small world”.
Still want a Nomad. This has not changed my mind…..
I just realized that none of the wagons had the beltline dip that went with the side trim. The ’55 Nomad open rear wheels wouldn’t have gone with the normal Bel Air trim either, so they had different side trim with nothing beyond a unique strip toward the front. The Nomad trim went over the headlights and was thicker with a paint stripe in the middle, similar to the rear side Bel Air trim.
I’m guessing they decided to not spend the money on the unique Nomad rear fender required for the ’56 because of the different tail lights, or the unique side trim. At least the over the headlight part of the ’55 trim couldn’t be reused because of the squared off ’56 brow. The low sales of the ’55 Nomad probably resulted in an edict from the bean counters.
Further into the weeds: the rear fenders of the Nomads had to be unique anyway because of the more slanted tailgate. I also noticed that although Fords had no external tailgate hinges somehow GM hadn’t figured out how to do that. On the other hand Chevys had a concentric column shift mechanism and Fords still had a crude separate shaft. Mercurys had a concentric version so Ford had spent the money to engineer and tool it but didn’t think Fords were worthy.
The standard 56 fender arch largely fixed the standard 55s stodgy skirted design, so while using the normal opening on the 56 Nomad takes away one of its unique traits I don’t feel it matters much, it still looks sporty, the roofline is the standout selling point and it’s still glorious.
It’s a good thing that the river is made of paper because there is a waterfall ahead.
Rapids wouldnt fit in the studio.
This photo uses “minimalism” concepts in its artistic composition. Yes, I’m sure it’s cheaper and easier to make a photo using blue paper instead of water and minimal decoration. But as an artistic concept, it works for me.
It may not have sold many cars, but it’s attractive and provoking.
Speaking of colors, my uncle owned a ’55 Two-Ten 2 dr sedan- coral (deep
pink) on the lower body- shadow grey on top. “Nomadic coral” and shadow grey was a fairly common Nomad color scheme. My father owned a ’56 Bel Air 9 passenger wagon- laurel green with crocus yellow side panels. Unusual to see at the time. Nearby neighbor had the same model in crocus yellow with onyx black side panels. Twins of a sort, but both rarely seen color combinations.
Seen a lot of pink and grey tile bathrooms in 1950s ranch houses as well
Au contraire, I think the color combination beautiful, and if none were sold so, more’s the pity. And the downward stroke of the side trim, a languidly gesticulating hand saying “Behold my car”, it perfects perfection. The ’55 looked hoiked and gappy with those high cutouts.
No, I’d step out of my canoe – or manhole, if that is what he’s in – and drive off into the sunset in just this edition. Once they’ve painted it in, that is.