Raise your hand who else has daydreamt about travelling to the past with discreetly-camouflaged high-definition digital camera equipment. No such luck with this interesting footage made public today from the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)’s archives, but even so, there’s a whole lot to see here. In those days before Expo ’86 and the 2010 Winter Olympics brought the blight of cheap and greedy development, Vancouver was much smaller and less populous 51 years ago—more my kind of place than today’s, though certainly not without awful blight of its own (more CCs at that link). And the air in town would’ve been considerably dirtier and more toxic with all those emissions-uncontrolled cars and trucks burning leaded gasoline. No matter; everyone just filtered their air through cigarettes.
It’s a timelapse, a big series of still pictures assembled into a kind of cinematic flip-book, so although each image is of higher quality than a filmed-movie frame would be, the film is kind of jumpy and difficult to follow. Have the volume turned up; the 16mm film projector sound seems to help a little. Eyes past might’ve had an easier time with it, accustomed as they were to gleaning usable information from blurry, flickering, small black-and-white television sets. Re-watching the film at 0.25× speed undid most of the flip-book effect and made car spotting easier. CBC’s release is headlined “How Many Volkswagen Beetles Can You Spot?”, but I was more interested in counting Valiants, starting with the white ’60-’62 model at 0:17.
Oh, and that screwy word in the title of this post is French for “slideshow”. The French call a photographic slide a “diapositive”, pronounced “dee-ah-pose-ee-teev”, commonly shortened to “diapo”. Who the hell wants to sit through a boring ol’ slideshow when you could go see a diaporama instead?
Thanks, Daniel ! What a find. I just took my first trip down memory highway. How did you manage to watch it at 0.25x speed ?
I love the way towns and cities used to look, with more brick and wood and stone, and less aluminum and fiberglass. For one thing, I’m reminded of the lovely drawings of R Crumb, seen here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRkq595NhD0
(Watch with the sound muted if Joni Mitchell isn’t your thing.) Now I’m going to troll through the CBC film with finger on the pause button, to nail some automobilia. Thanks again . . .
Hit “Play”, then click the gear at the lower right (to the left of the YouTube name) to get a pop-up with settings including speed.
This was wonderful, at .25 speed. A total time travel. So many familiar old cars. Vancouver is perfect for this, because there were more imports and because of the lack of rust, there are more older cars still on the road and looking pretty sound.
Thanks for a splendid trip!
The drawing shown in that video (normally viewed on one sheet, comic-style with 12 frames shown 3×4) was made in the ’70s. R. Crumb later updated it, drawing three possible scenarios answering the “What Next?” on the last frame. But they were all wrong IMO – the correct answer is: everything visible in the last frame is demolished and now there’s just a Wal-Mart in its place….
Were British cars more popular in Canada than the US? I don’t remember ever seeing that many here.
Wow, what a mix! Yes, quite a few VW Beetles, but more Austin Cambridges (including a fairlty rapid ‘Countryman’) than I expected, fair few Moggies* too. Haven’t tried 1/4 speed yet, even so an Epic* tale unfolded.
* Morris Minors
** spotted by it’s tail lights
Wow! That was neat! When we moved to Funcouver in 1970, I was five, and have fond memories of all of this. The drive from Horseshoe Bay to New West we did many times, and when I got my licence in ’81 there were really no appreciable changes in the city till Expo ’86. After that, everything changed, and not for the better. Some things yes, many no, despite the bleatings of the locals. But at that time, it was really interesting, and beautiful, peaceful even. I fondly recall the trip over Lions Gate and thru Stanley Park, followed with many industrial and marine business just off the Stanley Park Causeway. You can see the old Motor Vehicle Inspection Station just past the park a block or two past the lights on the right. I didn’t slow it down, but was the Texan Restaurant there yet on West Georgia just before the the inspection station?
Fun times and happy memories!
Wow, that was very cool! I was six years old in 1966, and already a car guy. Think I spotted a Rolls in the early part of the clip, and saw a ’61 Impala and great rear shot of that red ’62 Galaxie, thanks for posting this. BTW, Vancouver looks beautiful.
Okay — here we go with a quiz; fifteen cars I couldn’t identify. Consider the low-res images to be part of the challenge . . .
#1
Renault R-8?
NSU Prinz 4?
Sunbeam Imp?
I was thinking the NSU . . .
Possibly Fiat 850 sedan, but I think the NSU is a better guess.
I was thinking a NSU as well…
Fiat 850 https://cdn.classic-trader.com/I/images/340_255/vehicle_ad_standard_image_c1f722afcebd2756c7a0a2bc2cd9affe.jpg
#2
Datsun 410.
#3
Looks like an Austin Cambridge / Morris Oxford to me.
Standard Ensign?
#4
Envoy FB (Vauxhall Victor sold by Chev/Olds dealers).
#5
’65 Plymouth Fury?
This ?
65 convertible, with skirts and the dark section on the front is the oprtional bumper guard, the clear pic above is a 68 sports fury.
Yep, a ’65 – maybe ’66 Fury.
Stephen Ritchings has posted a ’68 like mine.
#6
Standard Vanguard.
Yes, probably a Phase II, without the beetle back.
#7 — the red sports car.
#8
Austin A40 Farina.
#9
Ford Anglia?
Could be – the base model had a small, central grille only, rather than the more familiar full width one.
http://www.simoncars.co.uk/ford/slides/Ford%20Anglia%20105E%20AS%20frontc.jpg
Might also be a Standard Ten/Pennant.
#10
Vauxhall Victor or Envoy FB.
#11
’66 Buick Riviera?
Looks good. But the Vancouver car has fatter wheel arch flares ? Custom job . . . ?
What’s that Edsel-esque white car to the left of the black car and above the red one?
In the film it’s clearly an Edsel — followed by another full-sized wagon, I believe, though I’ve forgotten the make.
#12
Datsun 410.
#13
Morris Minor maybe?
Pre-1956, with the smaller rear screen.
Even the same color ?
I beg to differ. Try the Morris most people forgot: the MO-series Morris Oxford. They look roughly like a Minor blown up 20%, and they have the licence plate light on a stalk above the plate (as here) – Minors have it below. Possibly also a Morris Six, Wolseley 6/80 or 4/44, all based on the MO shell, though these would be less common.
Could be as the two are so very alike. The rear plate illumination may be different because it’s an exported model; no doubt Canadian plates are different to UK ones. The MO doesn’t have that join line between the boot and roof and the rear window shape is slightly more arch topped than the Minor, but given the image size that’s a hard call. This similarity was used to good effect in ‘The Borrowers’ movie which otherwise almost exclusivley used Minors.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a7/3e/05/a73e05708057da1951fc2e3763edc1d7.jpg
Morris Six ? https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morris_Six_Series_MS_rear.jpg
Still wondering about the white car seen below in profile — with damaged front end. The roof looks thicker at the back than a MM; could it be a larger Morris ? Can’t locate a profile view of a Six two-door . . . if such a thing exists.
You won’t find one. The larger sedans were four-doors only.
#14 — two shots. Easy !
Standard Ensign.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Standard_Vanguard_4-Door_Saloon_1958.jpg
Possible, but more likely to be a Vanguard. The Ensign was a stripped small-bore recession-era special not as likely to have been exported. Vanguards were everywhere in Australia when I was growing up, but I never saw an Ensign.
#14
#15
Morris Minor.
I wonder. The convertible has a rear passenger window the same size as the sedan’s, too . . .
Morris Minor.
And — this ’58 Buick had something bad happen to it, I think; did it melt in the sun ?
That’s it. Have fun !
Looks like an acetate promo model that warped!
The most noticeable automotive aspect in that film, and the Better City videos you referenced, is the total lack of Canadian cars. This also shows in old still pics from other Canadian sources. LOTS of British cars and “regular” US models, but near zero Dodge Regents or Pontiac Parisiennes or Meteors or Monarchs.
I ran the time-lapse in Gomplayer, which has easy slowdown and speedup keys. With appropriate use of the keys, the soundtrack is just like a Model T!
I disagree; I saw several Canadian cars—such as the red ’64 Canadian-model Valiant convertible, and the ones mentioned above by Stumack.
There are two ’56 Canadian Fords on a bridge, aren’t there ? (Would those be Monarchs ?) Some of the non-American small cars I assumed would not have been (much) imported to the US . . . and thus unfamiliar to me.
If anyone is interested, google “TRanBC” and “road trip time machine”. There’s lots of these shot all over BC in 1966 by the then Department of Highways. This is just the latest one. They were used by the engineering staff for planning purposes. I’m old enough to remember BC in 1966, and my family was pretty mobile at the time so they bring back lots of memories. Quite a lot of what you see in these still existed when I started driving in the ’70s, but except for rural areas it’s all very different today. Sigh….
One of the most striking things is the number of gas stations there used to be, and how little traffic.
I wasn’t born yet but I remember some old maps who showed the main freeway of the time like the Vancouver-Blaine highway and the current Trans-Canada highway was known as BC-401 and BC-499 who was renumbered in 1973. There’s some photos of what was BC-401 (or TCH-401) posted at http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showpost.php?p=5737743&postcount=3353
along with some scans of old road maps. https://oppositethecity.wordpress.com/2014/02/27/from-trunk-roads-to-freeways-lower-mainland-highways-maps-1930-1967/
Vancouver had once a more ambitious freeway plan who was killed due to opposition.
https://pricetags.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/freeways-and-chinatowns/
I remember the 401, which was the only highway in BC with a 70 mph limit. Really moving in Dad’s old ’58 Bel Air. Don’t recall ever hearing anyone call the 99 the 499 though.
Thanks for the links, interesting stuff (to me anyway)!
I DETEST drivers like this. Judging by the number of people passing this catatonic driver on his right side, he/she has no business being on the road. MOVE OVER FOR FASTER-MOVING TRAFFIC! Of all the inconsiderate driving habits there are, this is the worst. Actually, the laws are to keep to the right unless passing, or to at least yield the right-of-way for faster-moving traffic. It’s a primary offense in three US States…don’t know about Canada.
There are laws against this. Pity the states and provinces do not enforce them. It would go a LONG way toward eliminating road rage on our highways, and TC & Interstate throughways.
Those laws are actually enforced here in BC fairly well. The vehicle that took these shots was a marked Highways Department vehicle that was used to survey provincial highways. It was in the left lane in order to photograph the maximum amount of roadway possible. This was done until well into the ’80s, and the vehicles involved were clearly marked with slow moving vehicle signs and lights.
I get what you’re saying, but in this case it was just someone doing their job.
On the section you are referring to, the lane was closed to traffic (red overhead light). No doubt it was also closed in the other direction so the driver had the lane all to himself for filming & he wasn’t holding anyone up.
Nice .
I crossed Canada in the late 1960’s, it was much like these photos, a fun trip indeed .
-Nate
BC Gas in 1966 39 cents
BC Gas in 2017 6 bucks
Highest in North America
I found watching it at 1.5 times the speed was more pleasant, but not as good for car spotting.
Amazing how quaintly small the downtown was then, pretty different than the lower mainland now. 30 years of half the people in Canada wanting to move there has changed things a bit.
I think you mean: 30 years of half the people in China wanting to move there has changed things a bit.
True dat. I think in some cases living there is wasted on those living there.
I had a face-palm moment a few years ago when I attended a meeting in Vancouver, talking with one of the local engineers who like me was a first generation Canadian, but unlike me of Indian extraction.
I mentioned how lucky he was to live so close to all this great nature and he replied “Oh yes, but I’ve never been out there”. Smack!
Oh, pish tosh! Just ask the BC Realtors Council or whatever they call themselves; they’ll fall over themselves to assure you that Chinese people buying up (and leaving empty) homes to pretend they live in BC is absolutely not a thing. The housing situation in Vancouver is definitely not caused by that, not even a little bit. No, no, no. It’s caused by, um…
…uh…
…well, y’see, the thing is…
HEY, LOOK OVER THERE! »runs away«
What a treasure! Fascinating “cinematic flip-book” as you say.
Thanks for this. Nice to see more OLD cars on this site!
Vancouver in 1966
And 50 years later
I’d rather breathe today’s air and suchlike, but other than that I prefer what I see in the ’66 pic.
Great post. Saw several models I’ve never even heard of. Never been north or west of Aurora Ill., though.
year end prices…
Gasoline 39ct
I spotted full-size Chevys every year from 1955 to 1966, plus a smattering of older ones. Lots of Pontiacs also, including a 63 Grand Prix near the beginning and many 1965s and some 1966s. And lots of Beetles.
I’m glad so much footage exists of pre-Expo Vancouver. At the same time though, its sad to see how completely unrecognizable the city has become. I hear so much about how nice Vancouver used to be from my family. I wish I could have been there.