GM Divisions' owner magazines

[rocketraider]

When I logged in today the photo gallery showed a 1958-9 issue of Buick Magazine that Centurion had posted.

Got me thinking- I know Oldsmobile had the Rocket Circle and Pontiac had Safari, but did Chevrolet and Cadillac produce any "owner loyalty" type magazines?

Then there is always Ford Times, which my uncle Gene got for years.

Did any other carmakers produce these type magazines? They always have interesting articles which tie in to their product. The 1964 World's Fair issue of Rocket Circle (that introduced the Vista Cruiser) is in high demand in Oldsworld as are any of the Miss America Pageant issues.

[R W Burgess]

Do truck magazines count Glenn? Peterbilt's First Class Magazine and the GMC Magazine of today!

I don't know about early magazines. You guys are a lot older than me!

[Dave@Moon]

A lot of smaller manufacturers formed "owners associations" (clubs) whose newsletters were de facto factory magazines. Often the imported car associations were organized by the importer (at least at first), and the newsletter eventually morphed into the company magazine. They usually didn't have the resources of a G.M., but never the less promoted the cars and covered their exploits (often better, with less "fluff").

Such was the case for Triumph in the U.S. Here are links to some (complete) examples:

http://www.templeoftriumph.org/tsoa/TSOAMarApr57.pdf

http://www.templeoftriumph.org/tsoa/TOSASept69.pdf

http://www.templeoftriumph.org/tsoa/TSOAMarApr78.pdf

(If there are any Triumph people listening, this is a link to the (nearly) complete archives online: Triumph Sports Owners Association (TSOA)* Newsletters Archive Menu )

[NTX5467]

Chevy had their magazine. Chrysler-Plymouth had theirs. There was also a GM Parts magazine which went to wholesale customers.

Many dealers signed up for "the program" and sent the magazines to their new vehicle customers, for at least one year after the purchase. Others sent them to popular places many people went, as in "beauty salons" (for the ladies) and doctors' offices. Although these magazines usually showcased the current model (or new model) vehicles, there was usually a "thinness" in their articles.

"The Ford Times" was probably the BEST, all-around magazine of the bunch! Certainly, new Fords were showcased in lots of scenic locations, but also lots of other interesting information and articles. I have some of them in my collection, from the earlier and middle 1960s.

Enjoy!
NTX5467

[rocketraider]

Willis, do you know what the Chevy and Mopar magazines were called? I think I may have seen a mid-60s Chevy magazine introducing the Caprice but cannot remember its name.

Burgess, far as I'm concerned any magazine any vehicle manufacturer (or in Dave's example with the import distributors) published for their loyal or enthusiast owners counts.

I remember one issue of RC had an article about installing and using mobile phones in your Oldsmobile. Believe me when I say a 1960s mobile phone was a far cry from what we think of as a mobile phone now. It took up a good chunk of the front seat!

[R W Burgess]

...........I remember one issue of RC had an article about installing and using mobile phones in your Oldsmobile. Believe me when I say a 1960s mobile phone was a far cry from what we think of as a mobile phone now. It took up a good chunk of the front seat!

Ahhh, reminds me of 77 Sunset Strip. Stu and the boys had the first mobile phones that I remember, and of course Kookie's hot rod was cool too.


Wow, did I really say that out loud!

Wayne

[NTX5467]

There were some of the earlier 1960s AMT models which had a mobile phone that would fit on the transmission "hump" between the seats. Where they went when you had a full console (ala '63 Galaxie 500/XL), who knows. It looked just like a normal phone from back then, other than the custom mount it was attached to.

77 Sunset Strip? I've got an original sound track album. Came with a glossy autographed picture of "Kookie" Ed Byrnes, too. The other pictures of the characters surprised me as they were so colorful and up close . . . things which didn't show up on black and white television back then. ONE of the many Warner Bros productions which had lots of nice Fords in them, back then!

(Back on topic) . . . I don't recall what the Chevy magazine was called, I only saw ONE copy which included a "sample drive article" in a new '72 Caprice. Seems like the C-P magazine was "Traveller"? I have a few copies archived somewhere. Seems like it had a different name in the '90s, though. I'll see what I can find out.

I know that many dealers didn't participate in these magazine programs due to cost issues (most likely), but as with some of the dealership "trinkets" (like leather key fobs), these were some of the most-remembered treasures of vehicle ownership. Just like Cadillac's gold keys, if you didn't get them, you felt "cheated" (so to speak). These things were one of the many things which put "value" in dealing with certain dealers, then and now, which set them apart from dealers which didn't do those things. Gave that dealer's customers "bragging rights" and a reason to do business with that dealer.

Just some thoughts,
NTX5467

[5219]

Back in the seventies I bought a new MGB. Shortly afterwards, I received a copy of "Safety Fast", the official MG Car Club Magazine. My father was a repeat Cadillac buyer. Every once in a while, there was some magazine that he would get from Cadillac division. It was very irregularly published.

[john2dameron]

The Chevrolet magazine was "Friends." I don't remember it being overly automobile related but more of a travel type of magazine. I used to see it occasionally in the '50's and probably also in the '60's and then it disappeared. "Ford Times" was more interesting. Ford Times was about a 5-6 X 8 inch publication, Friends was about the size of a sheet of typing paper. There was also a Harley-Davidson mag called the Enthusiast but one of the best vehicle magazines was Indian Motorcycle that was printed quarterly. I have 3 copies a lady sent me when she was on a house cleaning stir. I guess one of her sons must have been an Indian fan.

[Harold]

In the sixties, at least, Mopar had the 'Plymouth Traveler' magazine (each issue focused on a particular city or region) and 'Dodge News Magazine'. Buick Parts & Service had 'Genuine Opportunity' magazine for the trade.

[TG57Roadmaster]

Chevrolet's magazine was called Friends, and I believe it began in the early-fifties (wrong(!) corrected by allcar below); i have a couple from about 1954. There are a bunch for sale on ebay. The best ones (for me) are the Buick Magazine "Announcement Number," issues from November of the late-30's to early-forties (the mag began in 1935). They have a four-page gatefold center spread showing all the years' models and series.
Fun to have.

TG

[allcars]

Interesting topic...and owner magazines can be fun to collect. I have assembled and never tire of looking at a fairly complete collection of Buick Magazine, which started in 1935 and, except for the WWII period, was continued into 1961. Chevrolet Friends started publication in 1939 but was presumably suspended for WWII. It was then published by CECO, an arm of Campbell-Ewald advertising, at least into the late 1980s. Circulation was up to one million a year at one time. It seems the '50s and '60s issues are the easiest to find. CECO also published Corvette News starting in 1957. That title ran into the '80s, and was followed by Corvette Quarterly, which ran from Spring 1988 until at least 2009. Another interesting type of periodical are magazines intended for dealers...they tend to have much more of a product focus, but that's another topic...

I have a few issues of a Lincoln magazine somewhere from the 1963-1965 era that is very nicely produced. And of course, Ford Times was one of the first customer magazines and no doubt the longest published...from April 1908 until 1996, according to Wikipedia.

Such magazines can be good reference for ads and announcement stories about mid-year and special models that aren't in the regular sales catalogs, etc.

[TG57Roadmaster]

allcar,

Thanks for the info on the beginnings of Buick's and Chevrolet's magazines; I was basing Buicks' origins on the volume numbers, and not figuring for WWII interruptions. A few questions that your holdings may answer. Was '42 the last year for the gatefold in the Announcement Number, and when did the gatefolds begin? It will give me something to look for, as I want to (naturally), "collect them all!" Also, was it common for the Spring Issues to have additional inserts, as they did with the Spring 1957's, "It's Springtime in a Buick," where they intro'd Spring Colors and, in that year, the new Roadmaster 75 (unveiled mid-March of '57)?

My primary focus is on the '47, '49, '57, and '60 models, but those early gatefolds are of great interest, and I've never met anyone with an archive of the magazine.

Thanks,
TG
And now, back to your regularly scheduled programming...

[CBloomberg]

I remember when I lived at home in late '60's or early '70's my dad gat an excellent mag called Ford Truck Times or something similar. It not only contained promotion on current models but had articles on people who owned their pickups for a long time. Some excellent pictures of classic Ford pickups.

[allcars]

TG57 Roadmaster,

I believe the 1942 intro issue contained the last of the Buick Magazine centerspread double gatefolds showing all the models.

September 1935 introduced the 1936 models and its double gatefold shows most of the models, except for the Limiteds, which are to be found on the inside front cover. The '37, '38 and '39 intro issues have double gatefold inserts that include all models. These are all October issues ... October 1936 for the 1937 new models, etc., etc. Can't find my '40 intro issue so unable to confirm issue date right now. '41 intro is September 1940 issue; '42 intro is October 1941. As you probably know, the gatefolds were also issued, with different cover pages, for dealership and auto show distribution. They show up quite frequently on Ebay and at at swap meets in that form.

In case anyone wonders what a double gatefold is, we're talking about an extra wide sheet of paper that has been folded in on itself to create what amounts to an eight-panel (four on each side) centerfold insert. In the 1937-42 Buick Magazine announcement issues, the reader lifts the folded-over pages at the center, which reveals a 'spread' four pages wide grouping all the Buick series and models for the year (or at least the ones available at the beginning of the model year) in neat color illustrations.

I don't recall seeing spring color centerspreads or gatefolds in any of the pre-WWII issues. My '40 Roadmaster Convertible Coupe was introduced in March, 1940, and that month's issue of Buick magazine does talk about the new mid-year Super and Roadmaster Convertible Coupes and "Phaeton" four-door convertibles, but offers only black and white illustrations...dang it!