1949 CHEVROLET DEALER FILM “IT COULD BE YOU” POST-WAR AUTO SHORTAGE GENERAL MOTORS 88654

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Made by Jam Handy, "It Could Be You" dates to 1949. This film was made during a time of unusual crisis -- when a shift from wartime to peacetime production led to a unique shortage of new cars despite heavy demand. As the film explains during WW2, the USA's auto industry was geared towards manufacturing war materials, leading to a complete halt of production of new makes and models. The film opens with a man receiving a phone call about a delivery of his brand-new vehicle (1:05). The narrator explains that Chevy is making more new cars than any other manufacturer (1:13). Two men are watching the film in a theater and one asks “When do I get my new Chevrolet?” (1:45). His peer replies that he must watch the rest of the film (1:54). The pair continues to watch (2:08) and it carries on with how in the early 1940’s when someone wanted a new car they could have one within a day or two (2:16). Many American’s had become accustomed to the ease and availability of being able to get replacement vehicles until WWII hit (2:44). Automobile plants were cleared out for the manufacture of war materials (2:47) which meant that production of new cars completely stopped. Within the US, citizens were encouraged to carpool and conserve gas for the war effort (3:02) and people turned from buying new products to having their old worn out products fixed which included their vehicles. A magazine follows showing post war cars (3:12) that many citizens anxiously waited for. Banners and building signs read “Japanese surrender” as V-J Day arrived on August 15th, 1945 (3:19). For automobile manufacturers such as Chevrolet, this meant the starting gate for production of new cars for residential and commercial use (3:24). The inside of a Chevrolet automobile factory is shown (3:28). Prior to the war they had constructed new facilities which made possible the production of more new models than previously (3:35). As the war progressed however, Chevrolet was still unable to meet the growing demand and had to continue to expand (4:06). Chevrolet executives and engineers are seen going over blueprints as they would have to build more new factories and hire thousands of new employees that would also have to all be trained (4:16). New materials that were developed in the war called for new machinery and for new trainings for employees (4:32). Thousands of small parts were redesigned so that they could be put to use the new war materials that had been developed (4:39). Unfortunately, they hit a roadblock when they encountered a severe shortage of vital parts (5:10). Supply of master brake cylinders completely dried up and the production lines halted (5:18). About 15,000 parts go into one new vehicle and each is necessary for the whole and this shortage sent Chevrolet workers hunting for parts (5:55). Not only were automobile manufacturers experiencing difficulty in getting the parts they needed but so too were manufacturers of lawn mowers, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. (6:57). The man from Chevrolet’s purchasing department is seen heading into a hardware store on the hunt and at an airport a plane is filmed just prior to take off chock full of carburetors (7:21) to be sent to hold Chevrolet over until the main shipment arrived. In 1949, there were still not enough materials to turn out the number of new cars that Chevrolet was now equipped to produce (7:35). The man watching the film asks again where his new car is just before he is swarmed by an angry crowd all asking the same question (7:50). The years of not making any new cars had caught up with the dealerships (8:34) and even the used car industry was choked as everyone had to hold onto what they had (8:56). The demand for new cars was increased more so as people who could not once afford cars in the past were now able to (9:17). Just before the war’s end, General Motors and Chevrolet created plans for the distribution of new cars among communities (9:41). They looked at the percentage of cars that had been sold in the community area in 1941 and allotted that area the same amount (9:50). This plan began with essential members of the community such as doctors and a “Department of Public Health” vehicle is shown (10:03). The film concludes as it informs viewers that Chevrolet Dealers were working as hard as they could to turn the phrase from “It Could Be You” to “It Will Be You” and get new cars out to everyone who wanted them (10:27). This film is a Jam Handy Picture (10:42).
This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit www.PeriscopeFi...

[@stuuuporman]

I'm turning 80 this August. Four years after my dad returned from the war in the Pacific, he was assigned back to Tokyo and we followed soon after. Our new 1949 car went too. What a picture we must have made when our family, which include my blond mother & sis, traveled around Japan in a yellow Chevy convertible. We returned to the states in 1953. But, my father sold the convertible to a Japanese businessman for $7000, a small fortune back then. My dad talked about buying a new Cadillac, but he got a new 1953 baby blue and Chevy Bel-Air 4 dr sedan with Power Glide automatic tranny, radio, white wall tires and a heater.

[@miscchan0001]

I’m glad that Phil Hartman’s dad finally got his Chevy

[@BeechSportBill]

We came home from Trinidad in February 1949 and drove a new 1949 Chevrolet out of the dealership in New York all the way to Oregon. Somehow, it was NOT equipped with a heater!

[@johnzeszut3170]

In the Nam you could order a car that would be waiting for you when you arrived home. There was a list of what you wanted on the auto and a heater was at extra cost! Man you drive had to be brutal.

[@bloqk16]

I recall my dad's uncle had a 1953 Chevy sedan without a heater, as they guy was notoriously frugal. But then, living in California, the winters were not that severe. There was a time when 'car coats' and driving gloves were nearly standard wardrobe items in the 1920s through the '40s in America for driving in cold weather. My dad loved the fashion statement car coats made when he was younger.

[@resetsetmefree478]

​@@bloqk16did it have a radio lol

[@donaldkgarman296]

HEATERS WERE AN OPTION

[@resetsetmefree478]

@@donaldkgarman296 for the base model yes I can believe it. Even to this day whether you use the heater or not depends on where you live. In places like Arizona or new Mexico it's really not needed so it would have been optional depending on the market. My dad said at one time they were dealer installed

[@bloqk16]

(in a tone of astonishment) Say! The word "Volkswagen" being used in 1949 was remarkable to hear, as the VW 'Beetle' was just arriving in America's shores that year; with its future popularity still an unknown aspect at that time.

[@ericripley9739]

Was thinking exactly the same thing!

[@donaldkgarman296]

VOLSWAGEN WAS BUILDING TANKS AND DKW DUCK HALF TRACKS DURING THE WAR

[@FordCoupe]

These are 1948s ("T" bar on front grille. Good explanation of what happened with Covid as well except no one can afford a car at all, new or old.

[@manhoot]

love these old vids. They are keen

[@davidrasch3082]

Yeah! I was born in 1950 so this is current history for me.

[@aarond23]

This is how the post war auto manufacturing boom in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio started and lasted about 30 years.

[@postal_the_clown]

The first car I remember is a '49 Chevy coupe like @7:32. My Dad took out the back seat and lined it with plaid blankets as my area on long trips. Slightly related and referred to in the film, his Mom still had her '39 Plymouth then as a hold over.

[@ericripley9739]

That is not a '49 Chev. The '49's were entirely new. Google it.

[@AlfredEdwardNeuman]

Wow. How timely. We've come full circle. I wonder how the current post-COVID industrial shortages compare with the same type of shortages back in the late 1940s.

[@nlpnt]

"...but that good, dependable 2018 isn't there, because its' original lessor took the option to buy at the end of the lease, at a price calculated before the pandemic and chip shortage..."

[@raybin6873]

I do believe Americans would've responded much better to the pandemic back then....everybody would've gotten vaccinated AND used masks, etc. There wouldn't have been any truck convoys blocking traffic on briges - it simply wouldn't have been tolerated. 🇺🇸

[@donaldkgarman296]

THERE IS NO COMPARISON ....DURING WW2 EVERYTHING WAS IN SHORT SUPPLY

[@Trevor-08]

​@@raybin6873hahahahaha, that's hilarious that you think that.

[@T-41]

Not to say when this film was made or shown, but the new Chevrolets it contains appear to be 1948 models.

[@michaelquinones-lx6ks]

That car driving out of the dealership was cool, A balloon tire behemoth iron car that would crush a plastic Toyota 'Prius' those cars were built like tanks.

[@kenmore01]

Oh, you scared me there for a minute. I thought this was going to turn into one of those "waa, we have competition from imports" videos. I'm glad to see it was just "waa, we have too much business" instead.

[@nlpnt]

GM was alone in making annual styling changes to their prewar holdover models between their relaunch as '46s and the all-new '49s. For Chevy that was relocated side moldings and a new grille for '47, and the vertical grille piece that splits it on the '48s featured here. Those were minor, pro forma changes but still only GM had the extra engineering and tooling resources to do them (Ford relocated their parking lights early in the '47 run but that seems to be replacing a more-complex diecast bezel with a generic round "beehive" light).

[@kc4cvh]

Who will pay an inflated price for a car hastily slapped together from whatever could be scraped up? It could be you!

[@johnzeszut3170]

Evidently a lot of folks did!

[@georgestreicher252]

Those cars were under $2000 and made of steel, not cheap plastic like today. All production cars are slapped together. Worked in several auto factories in the 60s. Mahwah Ford assembly plant went 54 cars per hour. Pontiac went 85 cars per hour.

[@johnzeszut3170]

@@georgestreicher252 I can remember when plastic started to replace some steel parts. When I pointed this out the salesman told me that this was done to lighten the car and save gas. Well probably so. Remember when cars had gauges rather then "idiot" lights and wing windows! Not every change is for the better.

[@kc4cvh]

@@georgestreicher252 Allowing for inflation, they were about $25,000 MSRP, plus those dealer-added options to pad the bill, and maybe a bribe to the sales manager to bump you up on the waiting list.

[@nlpnt]

@@kc4cvh And it's surprising how little car prices inflated if you compare like with like through the end of the '60s, a base 2-door '69 Nova MSRP wasn't much more than two grand. Of course, someone in 1969 would've thought an Impala was the line successor to that '48 Chevy and that cost about $4000 typically equipped but that included a lot of size and feature creep.

[@simonf8902]

Great Yankee hustle and know how.

[@loumontcalm3500]

The post war sellers market was ending soon after this film was made, but the Korean War put another squeeze on production. Hence the Korean War Chrome... no nickle plating on 1952 brightwork. The armed forces needed the nickle. By 1953, it was a buyers market. Chevrolet and Ford had a production “war” to outdo each other in sales. The biggest sufferers were the independents- Studebaker, Kaiser, Nash, Hudson, Packard.

[@stejer211]

Exhaustive explanation to distract consumers from the fact that car dealers were still selling 1941 models.

[@mrdanforth3744]

This film must have been shot in 1948 before the new models came out in September. The shortage of new cars was over by early 1949.

[@78Rudys]

This reminds me of the short clip on MST3k before Manos.

[@nlpnt]

Jam Handy Productions reminds you to keep your preserves conveniently positioned.

[@RivetGardener]

It sucks to be you in that small town that sold 6 chevy's during 1941. You're not getting one soon...ha ha!

[@roadracing3]

First 2 minutes is like today for guys who want a new Camaro....lol

[@jamesalarkin1795]

they was not 1949 chevys 1948 or before

[@JohnReitz-ps2ct]

Creepy dealer was looking for some C-notes under the counter. This dunce was too thick to get the message...

[@thetreblerebel]

No wonder guys coveted Cadillacs when they got that big promotion

[@dangarrison3503]

Man, pin stripe suits and cigarettes were cool...

[@michaelmerck7576]

I could do well without either one

[@billbright1755]

Now we wait,, Well if you ever get in jam it could come in handy.

[@damxgopak457]

It could be you but probably not.

[@resetsetmefree478]

It could have been me if I was around then I think. I always get the feeling that I was born completely at the wrong time and place 🤔

[@stex1985]

Sorry folks that’s not a 49, is a 47 or 48, I own a 49!

[@hatuletoh]

I think a modern dealership just messed his trousers. Or starting weeping softly. Maybe both. I guess there is one group of people who can tell old-timers to piss off if the old-timers try to give them a line about how hard it was back in the day, and how easy today's salesmen have it.

[@thetreblerebel]

It's yours for maybe 5 years until you go in debt for a newer model

[@fromthesidelines]

3:08- COLLIER'S, June 28, 1947 issue {"The Strange Embarrassment of Madame Aumont", by Jim Marshall [about Maria Montez and her husband, Jean-Pierre Aumont], page 12- followed by "Dreams Unlimited", by Bernard M. Crandell [about new car styles projected for the next 50 years], page 14}

[@scottyrobot]

thanks! i was wondering

[@markechler5768]

I am sure you paid more than sticker price. Supply and demand.

[@nlpnt]

There were still WPA price controls on new cars. So, you paid an inflated price on whatever accessories the dealer threw on the car before calling you to pick it up.

[@chuckschafer6728]

@@nlpnt OPA

[@bunk95]

Stealing is just as fictional as auto companies, dealerships, etc. are.

[@jd-if2fe]

What a about the 49 ford?

[@postal_the_clown]

A beautiful machine...

[@operator91210]

I believe it was announced roughly the same time this film came out in '48. Ford was the first to offer a truly new car amongst the big 3. Some independents like Studebaker and Kaiser offered new cars in '47 but the independents didn't have the manpower to compete with the giants

[@durandjohnson1321]

1948 chevrolet

[@fromthesidelines]

The film was completed in October 1948, before the new '49 models were introduced.

[@Sashazur]

Anyone know what kind of plane that is at 7:15? It’s not a DC-3.

[@moboutmen]

0:20 Guy smokes a carton and a half a day......

[@jamespn]

Sounds like our pandemic and people waiting for EV cars.

[@operator91210]

3 model years of lockdowns/this/ that and what else. Not just EVs have waiting lists. I know people who are on a 2 year waiting list for Toyota's. What a time to be alive

[@jmar1973]

Haha,the animations look so...Fallout!😹

[@dsmith11373]

American's in 1941 "what can we do for the common good". American's in 2020 "screw my neighbors and fellow citizens i won't wear a mask!"

[@georgestreicher252]

New Danish study on masks proves that masks don't stop covid. the covid plandemic is a scam.

[@fromthesidelines]

And I suppose all those deaths are a "scam", too.

[@georgestreicher252]

@@fromthesidelines The virus is as deadly as the common flu and yes people who have comorbidity do die. The death toll is wildly inflated for political and economic purposes. Always be warry when consuming propaganda from the corporate mainstream media.

[@postal_the_clown]

@@georgestreicher252 Oh, so all the numbers are inflated from all the sources all around the world in a tightly controlled conspiracy like flat earth and moon landing deniers...riiiiiight.

[@georgestreicher252]

@@postal_the_clown Not all sources around the world. Alternative media is getting the truth out as apposed to the corporate controlled media. Follow the money. Figures lie and liars figure. I know its hard to admit the powers that be would lie to us but we must face that reality. To them we are no more than a disposable resource or in their new found save the planet philosophy, carbon pollution. Remember, only six corporation control the legacy media.

[@ivorwm2291]

1947

[@Franklin-pc3xd]

As the saying goes - and went - "...be careful what you wish for...." Getting your own Chevy was no gift .... they were and are garbage..... the Googles of cars.

[@dellencergal21]

Lovely 😍💋 💝💖❤️