From "The Fight to Save Googie, the Style of Postwar Optimism/The car-centric architectural style, characterized by neon signs and dramatic rooflines, is now endangered. Its admirers mourn the loss of the ideals it represented" (NYT)(free-access link so you can revel in all the photographs).
December 22, 2024
"The architect Helen Fong played a major role in designing some of the most well-known and eye-catching Googie buildings, including the first Norms, the Holiday Bowl and Pann’s Restaurant."
"Ms. Fong was known for being meticulous, and she loved a pop of red: Just as Pann’s was about to open to the public, she thought one of the walls looked too blank, so she took out her red nail polish and started painting some of the tiles, said John English, a historic preservationist and a friend of Ms. Fong...."
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38 comments:
I have a book on that post war period and style, "Populuxe".
Googie wasn't confined to just buildings,
https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=Awril61oSWhn.NU4JSAPxQt.;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzEEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3Nj?p=tail+fins+on+cars+1950s+pictures&mkr=8&type=type9099612-spa-3503-84593¶m1=3503¶m2=84593&hsimp=yhs-001&hspart=mnet&ei=UTF-8&fr=yhs-mnet-001
Those Googie designs celebrated an idealized future that, with the passage of time, in actuality is turning against those designs?
Don't despair, we'll always have Sonic drive-ins.
Hard to believe that Google isn't behind this movement.
Took me longer than it should have to realize this wasn't about Google.
My first thought was the Guggenheim must be in trouble
Grew up in LA. Bless her.
And yet architects continue to celebrate the main terminal building at Dulles International Airport. I suppose because it was designed by famous architect Eero Saarinen. Still, landmark or not it features acres of glass windows and a swooping roofline, which makes it as Googie as it gets.
Of all of those photos at the links - my vote is to save "N O R M S".
The place looks amazing and immaculate.
Save NORMS!
Love the photos. But the Arby’s 10-gallon hat doesn’t fit with the Googie style. That comparison seemed forced.
Great post. Thanks for sharing.
The cantilevers were long enough, but they did not move the world.
I still haven’t seen Megalopolis. I’m out of the loop. First time Long time.
That's just classic American roadside architecture, like the old White Castles.
Quick, somebody invent a new word to capture the meaning of this gestalt: That peculiar kind of nostalgia one gets from seeing & remembering an old 'concept of the future' that turned out to be completely wrong.
Helen Fong was a remarkable architect. Anyone outside of Los Angeles probably doesn't even know who she was. Her designs were whimsical as well as practical... She deserves recognition.
With a lot of these old-time diners, you could count on a pretty good meal if all you wanted was a burger and fries or a hearty breakfast. That wasn't the case with Norms, which (in my limited experience) was a lower-quality Denny's with a less innovative menu.
Amen
Aggie, retro-futurism is all about that, though it's not exactly describing the feeling.
Nice try, Ted. Norms was great, toasters on the table, great breakfasts. Totally LA experience.
Victoria, that may have been true in the past. When is the last time you ate at one?
"I certainly hope it was in the parking lot.”
me too!
neon is The Best, of ALL the noble gases.. Not that Helium is a slouch either.
NORMs? night of rest motel?
John Henry
NORMs? night of rest motel?
John Henry
My late BIL was a M. Yamasaki Architect. To say architects are meticulous is a start. It is genetic.
I could smell Gorge's 50's Diner just looking at the picture. I've never been there.
Not precisely Googie, but designed by FLLW:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/frank-lloyd-wright-gas-station
I grew up in Hawthorne California - went to school with the Beach Boys. We had two Googie style coffee shop/restaurants. Chips and Holleys. Chips is still there and gets a news write up ever few years. Holleys was the coffee shop in Pulp Fiction. I had coffee with a bunch of high school friends and business associates every day at Holleys for 20+ years - 8 am and 3:30 pm. Boy, those were the days.
Didn't know this was an architectural style. We have a local Googie style restaurant called the Sno-white Drive-In.
One of the Googie style diners in Flagstaff was a transmission parts shop for years. Last I saw it had been done up as a diner again. There is also a Googie bowling alley in Flag called the Starlight.
6 months ago
you mean Ships
My hometown of Charlotte had a googie McD's from 1970 until it was replaced by a Chase Bank building. The fries were great then, pure beef tallow. Agh, my heart.....
Love Googie architecture, anything mid century modern for that matter. Thanks for sharing and Merry Christmas!
I wrote an article on the evolution of gas stations some years back and that's where I first discovered 'Googie'. You can still find some around, mostly the ones with the big, swooping triangle shape.
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