[HARLEY EARL, INC. Corporate Identity]

Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Chevrolet Corvette

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CONTACT: Melissa Mengden Bunker, MarketWrite, at (313) 886-9074

The Corvette Turns 50, a Masterpiece from ‘The da Vinci of Detroit’

   ROYAL OAK, Mich., June 20, 2003 — Those who knew him say Harley J. Earl did what came naturally after watching popular European marques race at Watkins Glen in upstate New York.  He visualized what would become America’s first production sports car.

   Dream turned into reality two years later at Plant 53 outside Flint, Michigan, when the original 1953 Chevrolet Corvette rolled off the line.  June 30, 2003 marks the 50th Anniversary of the mobile masterpiece.

   “The Corvette is an excellent example of Harley Earl’s design philosophy,” Richard Earl, automotive historian and grandson of Harley Earl, said.  “Representing the American ideal, the automobile combines beautiful lines with a smart, strong character.”

   Although relatively few outside the industry recognize the original Corvette’s designer by name, Harley Earl is revered as “The da Vinci of Detroit” by his colleagues in the automotive design world, Richard Earl said.  Today, the figure of Harley Earl is featured in a new national advertising campaign for General Motor’s Buick Division.  An actor portrays the styling and design wizard, informing the public of GM’s renewed commitment to automotive design and styling excellence.

   "Harley J. Earl was a man of vision who helped establish styling and design as hallmarks of General Motors, " Richard Earl said. "His paradigm-busting process did more than mass produce affordable automobiles, it transformed his industrial car designs into moving works of art. And today, we still see — and celebrate — his work on the roads, driveways and museums across America and around the world."

   In order to preserve Harley Earl’s contributions to automotive styling and design excellence for the next generation, Richard Earl founded Harley Earl, Inc., and created the quintessential working biography and Internet resource on automotive design, the site www.carofthecentury.com.

   In addition to documenting the records behind the most seminal moment in Corvette history, the beginning, the site details many contributions of Harley Earl, who from 1927 through 1958 served as the first vice president for design and style of General Motors.  In that time, he was responsible for the designs of more than 50 million automobiles, including many of history’s classic designs, including the Corvette.

   From lengthening and lowering the body, to widening the wheelbase, Harley Earl’s innovations include full-size clay-modeling, the concept car, the development of integrated head and tail lights, eliminating running boards, the first-ever onboard computer in a car, use of dummies to crash-test automobiles, and the tail fin.

   The original 1953 Corvette is a direct descendant of the one-of-a-kind prototype     LE SABRE, a multi-million dollar research project hailed in 1952 as “The Car of the Future.”  Many elements of the LE SABRE were incorporated in the production version Corvette, including the wraparound windshield and subtle tail fins.

   Harley Earl also is remembered for creating many of the names of GM’s popular lines.  The LE SABRE nameplate would grace an Buick car several years later.

   “The 1952 car races at Watkins Glen sparked the idea for the Corvette,” Richard Earl said.  “Harley Earl saw many people, including World War II veterans, had imported sports cars from England and Germany.  My grandfather thought America could build a better sports car.  And so he did, creating the Corvette.  I believe, in the process, he also started America’s real love affair with the automobile.”

   “Harley Earl had many, many brilliant ideas,” Richard Earl said.  “They stemmed from the primary importance he gave design.  The public wanted cars with character.  And the Corvette had it in 1953.  Today, 50 years later, America’s first production sports car still has that unique character.”

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For more information, historical photographs from the Earl Family archives, or to interview Richard Earl, journalists are asked to contact Melissa Mengden Bunker of MarketWrite at (313) 886-9074 or marketwrite@comcast.net.