Chapter 1 - With such a pencil, such a pen.
The general outline for the book is to be a biographical account of
Virgil M. Exner Snr's life, from his birth in Ann Arbour, Michigan
in 1909; his adoption by the Exner's and his early years and
influences.
Chapter 2 - The Big Break.
The second chapter will deal with his early working career,
marriage, etc with an in depth look at Virgil's work at Pontiac
with Harley Earl.
Chapter 3 ' Dangerous Curves Ahead.
The third chapter will be one of the longest as this will deal with
Exner's time at Studebaker, including the war years, the famous
1947 Champion and the death of his youngest son.
Chapter 4 - The Fin Man.
Chrysler. Early concept car design, his first changes to production
models and his groundbreaking 1955 and i?1/257 model year
production designs.
Chapter 5 - Ship Ahoy!
The next chapter will be the early sixties when tastes in cars were
moving away from large finned vehicles to smaller more economic
cars and hailed the end of Exner's time with the corporation. This
will lead on nicely in to the consultation work he did, the
business he set up with his son designing amongst other things,
boats. This chapter will also look at his Stutz cars.
Chapter 6 - Circque De Exner.
This last chapter will naturally look at the end of his life
including his love of painting, in particular his passion for
European castles. His death in December 1973 will lead on to
examine just how large the legacy was he left us and awards that he
has been given posthumously.
Peter Grist has been writing about American automobiles for over 15
years. After a tenure in the military, Peter started writing for
the Chrysler Corp Club UK, which he ran for more than 10 years,
editing its monthly magazine, TalkFlite. This led to writing for
high street magazines, websites, and his first books: a history of
Dodge performance cars and a biography of American auto designer
Virgil Exner.
He has owned a succession of American built cars, including a 1955
Buick, a 1959 DeSoto, 1967 Coronet, a Shelby Charger, Jeep Cherokee
and an R/T Neon. He currently owns three Dodge vehicles, is married
to Catherine and has three children.
Highly-recommended - an important reference for those interested in car styling history from the 1930s through '70s as well as a fascinating insight into a most-influential automotive designer. - The View Through The Windshield
 |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
