“The all-new 2014 Corvette Stingray is the most advanced and engaging Corvette in the long, prestigious legacy of this uniquely American success story,” said Chris Perry vice president of Chevrolet Marketing. “It is a car woven into the fabric of American culture and it got its start right here in the Big Apple.”
The introduction of the original Corvette took place at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel on Jan. 17, 1953. Only 300 Corvettes were built – all of them white with a red interior. The enthusiastic response prompted Chevrolet to accelerate production plans and by late June that year, Corvettes were rolling out of a specialized assembly facility in Flint, Mich. One of these 300 is on exhibit at the National Corvette Museum, along with another piece of important Corvette history that many don’t know about.
Although the
Corvette crossed flags emblem has seen some variation over the years, it actually
had a controversial beginning. The first logo design included an American flag
crossing over the checkered flag to emphasize America’s entry into the sports
car world. Originally created by Robert Bartholomew, an interior designer at
Chevrolet, this emblem was installed on the 1953 prototype that was set to
debut in New York’s Waldorf-Astoria during the “Motorama” show. As preparations
were made for Corvette's big day, the Chevrolet legal department discovered
that it was against the law to use an American flag on any commercially made
product. With only four days left before the show, the pressure was on to come
up with a new logo, and fast.
The designers
acted quickly, and looked toward Louis Chevrolet for inspiration. Searching at
first for a family crest that could be adapted into a flag they ran into a dead
end, as the Chevrolet family didn't have a crest. Getting desperate, they
looked to the French origins of Chevrolet’s name for inspiration. They chose
the fleur-de-lis, which means “flower of the lily” as it is the French symbol
for royalty. Beneath that there are three lines to represent the three
Chevrolet brothers. The revised emblem was quickly made by jewelers and
installed on the prototype where it has remained on Corvettes ever since.
The actual
American flag emblem that was pulled off of the first Corvette for the Motorama
show is on display at the National Corvette Museum, on loan from GM.
