Here’s a photo of something we don’t see in Los Angeles anymore: a sign for Studebaker automobiles. But drivers passing through the intersection of Figueroa St and Pico Blvd near (what is now the LA Convention Center) would have seen it from blocks away – especially if it lit up at night, which I assume it did. And I’m sure that huge clock came in handy for people who didn’t carry around a watch, which in the 1920s, when this photo was taken, was probably handy.
I’m not sure that I have the right intersection in this June 2022 image, but if I do, there is nothing in the vintage photo that has survived into the current era.
Paul Hoffman was a friend of my family. My grandmother liked him so much she only bought Studebakers from a 1932 Dictator to a 1953 Champion.
Thanks Martin, I love it. I own a 1933 Studebaker so I am especially fond of that photo. Studebaker made a fine automobile in that era. Would sure love to see what it looked like at night.
Was he the man that owned that dealership? My car car is a President which was the top of the line car Studebaker (pretty rare car).
Interesting that Studebaker named a car “Dictator”!
I thought that was an odd naming choice, too!
They had the President the Commander and the Dictator in the full sized cars.
Marx brothers must have been running the show.
Everyone had watches then. And they were always checking them against the established “correct time” on clocks (often outside a jeweler/watchmaker store with a reputation). So, by having the biggest clock around, they could get more people looking in a direction that they might otherwise have missed. The result being, they’d see that Studebaker name under the clock and it would be printed on their brain. It’s like trying to forget that Wentworth phone number…877 Cash Now…permanent!
Thanks Martin, I love it. I own a 1933 Studebaker so I am especially fond of that photo. Studebaker made a fine automobile in that era. Would sure love to see what it looked like at night
There’s a Mercedes dealership on Wilshire in Santa Monica. Up until the Northridge quake, you could still see “Studebaker” carved into the stucco above the main entrance, underneath the Mercedes sign that had been attached to the exterior wall. I always enjoyed seeing that. Sadly, damage caused by the quake necessitated repairs to the structure that resulted in the disappearance of the old Studebaker sign.
Bill, Do you know if that building was from the 30s? We have a old building in downtown Denver that has a Studebaker sign engraved on the top front of the building which is really fun to see. There are also signs all down that street of cars that were sold like Franklin and Willys
That must have been the street of car showrooms in the day.
“Erskine” was Studebaker’s short-lived low price brand from 1927-30 and rebranded “Rockne” from 1930-33.