From the early 1940s to the late 1950s, Ciro’s at 8433 Sunset Blvd in the heart of the Sunset Strip was the premier nightclub in all of Los Angeles. In this photo, a bright pink 1957 Lincoln Premiere pulls into the driveway. This scene looks very staged, so I assume it’s some sort of promotional image, probably for a print ad. But the message is clear: When you want to make a big entrance at a fancy nightclub, you do it in a bright pink 1957 Lincoln Premiere in front of envious friends who are still standing in the driveway.
** UPDATE ** – Pulling up right behind this coral reef is a white ’57 Continental Mark II.
** UPDATE ** – My thanks to David G for finding the original print ad this image came from. (You can click/tap it to go to a larger version.)
Since 1972, the building that was once Ciro’s now houses The Comedy Store. This image is from February 2021.
A 1956-7 Lincoln Continental Mark II in background. A Lincoln commercial or Lincoln supplied cars? Would Ciro’s have been widely recognized?
Turns out it was for a Lincoln print ad, which I’ve now posted here. My guess is that Ciro’s probably would have been well-known for intended demographic for this car.
Maybe that Ciro’s Parking Lot Attendant was the inspiration for the Kookie character on 77 Sunset Strip? The timing seems about right.
Even before scrolling to the original ad I knew it had to be a FoMoCo publicity shot. Cadillac’s market share of the high end in the ’50s was close to 70% with Lincoln, (Chrysler) Imperial and the ghost of Packard fighting for table scraps.
I know of a guy in the northeast who has a ’59 Imperial he nicknamed Miss Tisdale because it had been sold new in Beverly Hills. I told him that given the market share there was a nonzero chance it was new to the star, director or producer of a show with Chrysler Corp sponsorship.
I was today years old when I first heard of “FoMoCo”!
You’re welcome. That and Mopar (officially Chrysler Corp’s parts division) will come in handy if you make it into the 1950s early TV sole-sponsorship era (“Is the Joe Blow Ford Show sponsored by FoMoCo corporate or by Ford Division?”)
That reminds me, in April of 1957 they were shooting “Pal Joey” in San Francisco. They were using parts of Coit Tower as Rita Hayworth’s home, (note the wind in the outdoor scene) and one day they announced they were bringing in 12 lavender Lincoln’s for Kim Novak. Lavender was her color then. Why 12 Lincoln’s, I have no idea, since she could only use one at a time. But such was the stuff of publicity stunts in those days. I have a photo from our old Brownie of a section of the Lincoln’s lined up along Telegraph Hill Blvd., but don’t know how to post it on here. They were indeed all lavender. Wonder what ever happened to them.
Unfortunately the photo is black and white.
Martin, thanks! What a trip for all us car buffs! The 57 Lincoln is cool, but the coolest of cool Lincolns was the 1959 model. That was a longer, sleek car. If you’re a tv buff, the car was featured a lot on PERRY MASON. Yes, I agree. The lot attendant could have inspired Kookie on 77 Sunset Strip!
PS….. We all love Kim Novak! She is still around! A class act. Old Hollywood.