Dagmar (pronounced dag-mahr)
(1) Stage-name
adopted by Virginia Ruth "Jennie" Lewis (née Egnor; 1921-2001), a
star of 1950s US television (initial upper case).
(2) Slang
term for the symmetrically-paired bumper extensions used by a number of US
vehicle manufacturers and associated mostly with Cadillac 1946-1958 (initial
lowercase).
(3) In
the study of marketing, as DAGMAR, the acronym of Defining Advertising Goals
for Measured Advertising Results (usually all upper case).
(4) A
female given name from the Germanic languages and of Norse origin, in
occasional use since the last nineteenth century (initial upper case).
Pre-1000:
A given name of Scandinavian origin, almost always female. It was the name of a queen of Denmark
(1185–1212), a Czech by descent, originally Dragomíra (related to the contemporary
Slovak Drahomíra), from the Old Church Slavonic dorgb (dear) + mirb (peace), rendered
in medieval Danish under the camouflage of dag (day) + már (maid). In Danish the meaning is listed as “day” and
“glory” and it’s used also in Slovakia, Poland (Dagmara), the Netherlands,
Estonia and Germany. The ultimate source
is the the Old Norse name Dagmær, the construct being dagr (day) + mær (daughter;
mother; maiden).
The Tsarina (Princess Dagmar), circa 1885.
Maria Feodorovna (1847–1928) was known before marriage as Princess Dagmar of Denmark. She became Empress of Russia upon marriage to Alexander III (1845-1894; Tsar 1881–1894) and was the mother of the last Tsar, Nicholas II (1868–1918; Tsar 1894-1917). Historians regard Maria Feodorovna as the most glittering of all the Tsarinas. Renowned for her beauty, her dark eyes were mentioned in both poems and diplomatic dispatches and said to be able to "fix men to the spot". She was also one of the most admired "clothes horses" in Europe, her tall, slender figure of the type seen today on catwalks and in London, Paris and Milan, the couturiers in the fashion houses would write letters to the Russian court, including sketches, sometimes offering their services in exchange for nothing more than the royal imprimatur.
Evolution
of the Cadillac’s dagmars, 1941-1959
Lockheed
P-38 Lightning & 1949 Cadillac.On
first looking at the 1949 Cadillac, a borrowing of the motif of the tail
fins and propeller hubs from the Lockheed P-38 Lightning (first flown in 1939
and built 1941-1945) does seem obvious but while it appears to be true of the
fins, all contemporary evidence suggests the conical additions to the front
bumper bar were intended by the stylist, Vice President of Design at General
Motors (GM) Harley Earl (1893–1969), to evoke the idea of a speeding artillery shells. In the twenty-first century, it may seem
curious to use the imagery of military munitions in the marketing of consumer
goods but it’s the way things were once done.
GM claimed also they afforded additional collision protection but given
it wasn’t until the 1970s that regulations existed to require front and rear
bumpers to be the same height, in many impacts, it’s likely they acted like
battering rams.
1941
Cadillac.The bumper guards (later called over-riders) on the 1941 Cadillac
were neither novel nor unique but, being on a Cadillac, they were bigger and
shinier than many. Nor was the linking
bar unusual, offered by many manufacturers and emulated too by aftermarket
suppliers, used often as a mounting bracket for accessory head lamps. There was nothing novel about the idea of additional bumper guards (or over-riders). They were not unknown in the early days of the automobile in the nineteenth century and similar devices, entirely functional as protective protuberances can be identified on horse-drawn and other forms of transport dating back centuries. It was only in the twentieth century they became a styling feature.
1942 Cadillac.A chromed pair recognizably dagmaresque made their debut in
the 1942 model year, production of which began in September 1941. Just as stylists had drawn from earlier
influences such as aeronautical streamlining and art deco architecture,
Cadillac’s designers, although the US was not yet a belligerent in what was
still a European war, picked up a motif from the military: the conical shape of
the artillery shell, presumably to invoke the imagery of speed and power rather
than destruction. One quirk of the early
dagmars is that after the US entered the war in December 1941, the government immediately imposed restrictions on the use of certain commodities for consumer goods and this affected chrome plating so the last of the 1942 production
run left the factory with painted bumpers.
Automotive production for civilian sale in the US ceased on 22 February 1942, the manufacturing capacity converted rapidly to war purposes.
1946-1947
Cadillacs.Although Washington had allowed production to continue until April,
most of the output was used to create a stockpile of over half a million cars and
light trucks, made available for the duration of the war to those deemed
essential. The sale of cars to private
buyers was frozen from 31 December by Office of Production Management although,
on application, local rationing boards could issue permits for cars to be
delivered if the contract had been executed before 1 January.
By
April 1944, only some thirty-thousand new cars remained in the stockpile and
the manufacturers received authorization to undertake preliminary work on
experimental models of civilian passenger cars with the proviso there must be no
interference with war work and limits were imposed on the resources allocated. At this stage, the invasion of mainland
Europe had not happened and, although progress on the atomic bomb was
well-advanced, it was top-secret and not even tested so planning continued with
the expectation conflict would continue into 1946 or even 1947. The war instead ended in August 1945 and that
month, Cadillac finished its last M-24 tank, the production lines reverting to
cars as soon as September. By the first
week of October, car production was in full swing, the 1946 models essentially
the 1942 range with a few detail differences.
The dagmars were retained and re-appeared also on the 1947 line.
1948-1950
Cadillacs.The 1948 Cadillacs got new
bodies although the drive-train was substantially carried over. Tail-fins weren’t new to cars but this was
the model which began Detroit’s tail-fin fetish which, although starting
modesty, would grow upwards (and occasionally outwards) for more than a
decade. Although a response to the
influence of the P-38 Lightning, the fins served no aerodynamic purpose, but unlike
Mercedes-Benz’s later claim the fins on the 1959 Heckflosse were Peilstege (parking aids), Cadillac never bothered
to suggest they were there to assist with reverse parking. Had they not been around since 1941, it’s
interesting to speculate whether the designer might have been tempted to invent
them to provide a pair of propeller hub matches for the P-38 inspired fins. The fins were mostly admired but the big news
for 1949 was the new overhead valve V8 which marked the start of a power race
which would run for almost a quarter century before environmental concerns, safety
issues and the first oil crisis put a stop to such things for a generation. In a manner echoing pre-war practice, the new
331 cubic inch (5.4 litre) V8 was
actually smaller than its predecessor; that would not be the post-war trend and
Cadillac’s V8 would grow to 500 cubic inches (8.2 litre) until reality bit in
the 1970s.
The industry’s
inspiration certainly came originally from the military, influenced either by artillery
and aviation. The first new Fords of the
post-war years came to be known as “single spinners” and “twin spinners”,
referencing the slang term for propeller.
Television
was the great cultural disrupter of the post-war years, creating first a
national and soon an international shared experience unimaginable in the
diverse media environment of the twenty-first century. Television needed content and, beginning in
1949, some of it was provided by Virginia Ruth "Jennie" Lewis (née
Egnor, 1921–2001): stage name Dagmar. Ms
Lewis adopted the persona of the dumb blonde but soon proved to be no airhead,
becoming the star of the show on which she'd been hired as the supporting act, parlaying
her fame to become one of the celebrities of the era. She was also impressively pneumatic which may
have accounted for her popularity with at least some of the audience and the
vague anatomical similarity to the Cadillac's chromed pieces quickly
saw them nicknamed "dagmars".
She was said to be amused by the connection and Harley Earl's notion of
speeding explosive shells was soon forgotten.
1951-1952
Cadillacs.
For 1951, the dagmars not only grew but evolved stylistically from
their bolt-on beginnings to become integrated with the bumper itself although,
technically, they remained separate parts.
The growth of the dagmar is illustrative of Darwin's theory of natural
selection; beneficial mutations within the genetic code that aid an organism's
survival will be passed to the next generation.
For much Cadillac’s next twenty-five years, bigger would be better.
1953
Cadillac.Whether or not Cadillac was influenced by the cultural impact of Ms Lewis isn’t documented but in one way the anthropomorphism became a little more explicit
in 1953, this time with uplift, supported still by the bumper but notably
higher. However, for 1953, the dagmars
also returned to their military roots with the addition of small stabilizer
fins so those seeking meaning in the metal should make of that what they will.
1954
Cadillac.Cadillac slightly enlarged the tails fins for 1954 but abandoned the little
fins on the dagmars, the shape returning not merely to something approximating
Ms Lewis but hinting also at the bullet bra style so associated with the era.
1955
Cadillac.Peak dagmar. Such was the importance of the dagmar, to afford them additional space, the parking lamps were moved to a spot directly below the head lamps. The uplift was quite explicit in 1955, the
superstructure suggestive of the cantilever effect which underlay the
structural engineering of the underwire bra.
Pursuing the metaphor, this was definitely up a couple of cup sizes from
the year before; while it’s hard to be exact, by 1955 Cadillac was well into
the alphabet.
1956
Cadillac.Apparently now content with the size and shape of the protrusions,
Cadillac devoted some attention to the surrounding details, the grill now with finer
texture and the parking lamps moved to lacunae cut into the bumpers. A novelty for 1956 was the option of the
grill being embellished in gold as an alternative to the standard satin finish
and the fins, although higher than the originals, remained restrained. That was not to last.
1957
Cadillac.Longer to lengthen the lingerie link, the uplifted dagmars now gained
padding, (actually more like pasties given they didn't actually increase a dagmar's size) the rubber attachments actually quite a good idea given how far their
chromed metal predecessors stuck out.
Although obviously not at the time foreseen, the idea would be revived
by some in the early 1970s as a quick, cheap solution to meet the new frontal-impact
regulations and the rubber buffers must in 1957 have prevented some damage,
both to victim and perpetrator.
Predictably, they were quickly nicknamed “pasties”, a borrowing of the
term used in the female underwear business to describe a stick-on attachment.
1958
Cadillac.GM’s 1957-1958 bodies suffered stylistically against the sleek
Chryslers of the era and one aspect Cadillac addressed for 1958 was the
perception the 1957 models had looked, remarkably, too short; a thing of
relative proportions as well as absolute dimensions. Still padded, the dagmars moved a little
towards the edges and the fins grew, losing the forward slope on some models which
had contributed to the sense of stubbiness.
1959
Cadillac.Cadillac retired the dagmars in 1959; Darwinian natural selection
again. (1) The dagmars, even if padded, did cause damage, (2) the adoption of
the newly legal quad head lamps in 1957-1958 created an opportunity for
stylists render something new and (3) whatever may have be the linkage with
women’s fashion, the old imagery of artillery shells or twin propellers was
outmoded in the jet-age, the new inspiration the twin-engined nacelle seen on the Boeing
B-52 Stratofortress and the Convair B-36 Peacemaker, four of which Cadillac grafted on, two for the head lamps,
two for the park lamps. Even in Detroit
in the 1950s, to add a pair of dagmars to that lot might have been thought a
bit much. The 1959 Cadillac is
remembered mostly for the extravagant tailfins with the twin-bullet tail-lamps and is regarded by most as peak tailfin.
That’s probably true although if determined by sheer height, the extreme
was actually reached on the 1961 Imperial.
Boeing
B-52 Stratofortress.Built between
1952-1962, the B-52 has been in service under fourteen presidents and has seen
several generations of airplanes come and go.
No longer used for its original purpose, it’s proved adaptable and has
been subject to a number of upgrades and revisions. It’s not impossible some may still be in
service in 2052, a century after the first flight. In most ways, the B-52’s design has proved
more durable than the 1952 Cadillac.
Translatable motifs: the Convair
B-36 Peacemaker and the 1959 Cadillac.Had
Cadillac wished to combine propeller-hub shaped dagmars with the shape of
jet-engine nacelles, there were examples from aviation. Some of Messerschmitt's prototype twin-jet
ME-262s were equipped also with a propeller driven by a Jumo 210 engine, a
helpful courtesy for the test-pilots given the unreliability of the early
jets. The US Air Force however provided
a better example. A transitional
airframe, the Convair B-36 Peacemaker (built 1946-1954) was one of the early
strategic bombers designed specifically as a delivery system for nuclear
weapons. With a greater payload even
than the B-52, in its final configuration the B-36 was powered by a remarkable
ten engines, six radial propeller units and four jets which lent the B-36 its
slogan within Strategic Air Command: "six
turnin' and four burnin' ". However, the propellers were in an unusual pusher
configuration, facing the opposite direction from the usual practice so it
would have been a challenge to continue the tribute to Ms Lewis. Instead, on the 1959 Cadillac, the twin
nacelles at the front and the twin bullet tail lamps to the rear are in pure emulation
of the airplane.
She may neither have noticed nor cared that Cadillac deleted the dagmars on the 1959 range but Jayne Mansfield (1933–1967) anyway brought her own when she bought a 1959 Eldorado Biarritz convertible.
1960 Lincoln Continental Mark V Executive
Limousine. Leased to the White House by
Ford for an annual US$500, this was the limousine that presidents used for
personal journeys around Washington DC.
Replaced during the Johnson administration (1963-1969) as part of the
periodic updating of the White House fleet, it was sold by public tender as
just another used car.
Athough their own extravagances were
hardly subtle, the fins on Fords, Lincolns and even Edsels never reached the
heights or bent to shape the contortions GM and Chrysler pumped out. Nor was Ford's embrace of dagmars
passionate. They appeared on the gargantuan
1958 Lincolns, disappeared the next year, only to return in 1960 but there it ended; they would have been an absurd addition to the clean lines of the 1961
Lincoln.
Notably, GM's other divisions rarely tried to match Cadillac in size, lift and projection, Buick the most committed though other manufacturers, albeit spasmodically, would use the theme. Mercury and Packard offered them on various models between 1953-1956 and Chevrolet's
were modest and rubber-padded. That idea was picked up by Ford in the early 1960s, their final
down-sized fling on the 1963 Galaxie; perhaps as a sign of the times, uniquely, they were offered only as an optional extra. In a distinctly un-dagmaresque way, a pair
appeared also on the rear bumper.
1974 Triumph TR6, 1973 Imperial LeBaron and 1974 Jaguar E-Type.There was no suggestion of anything Darwinian about the sudden,
unnatural addition of ungainly blocks of rubber to certain cars in the early
1970s. Some US manufacturers bolted them on as a stop-gap solution while the engineering was done to create the railway-sleeper line bumpers to comply with the next year's tougher standards. While some model lines were
substantially revised to meet the US’s new frontal impact rules, older
vehicles, some on platforms dating from the 1950s either couldn’t be adapted or
were so close to end-of-life the economics were not compelling. The quick and dirty solution proved to be somewhat non-anthropomorphic dagmars, this time made almost entirely of padding so predictably dubbed “falsies”. Awkward looking though they were, worse was
to come, some of the adaptations used to meet the rules were truly ghastly, a
few of which lasted well into the 1980s.
Art and Engineering: The
automobile, the sweater and the cross-over of techniques.
Cross-fertilization: Trends in one industry do get picked up
in others and it can be difficult
to work out who is being influenced by whom, cause and effect sometimes amorphous. Like the tailfin fad, the dagmar era came and went during the first generation of the affluent society, a brief, chromed moment during which excess could be enjoyed without guilt although, even at the time, there were critics. The dissenters probably weren't among those who actually bought the big Cadillacs, Lincolns and Imperials; between them there were differences but about one thing, all concurred. While conquest sales did happen,
especially if there was something genuinely innovative like the 1955 & 1957
Imperials or the 1961 Lincoln, Cadillac owners tended to be a breed apart, a
separate population. All however agreed that everybody likes boobs.
