Montalban, Former Chrysler Pitchman, Dies At 88

On Jan 15, 3:31*pm, edward ohare
> wrote:
> On Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:05:11 -0000, "Dori A Schmetterling"
>
> > wrote:
> >This thread made me look up the commercial, not knowing what the car looked
> >like.
>
> >Nice man, nice voice, shame about the car....
>
> Just a note here that the Cordoba was a huge success, outselling the
> Pontiac Grand Prix and Ford Elite, while being higher priced than
> either. *

Back then Chrysler was still a high-end brand, more like Buick or
Olds. That was before years of LeBarons, PT Cruisers, Voyagers, low-
end Town & Countrys, Aspens indistinguisable from Durangos, etc.,
diminished the name plate to the same level as Dodge, Pontiac, or
Mercury.


>The Chevy Monte Carlo outsold the Cordoba, but cost over
> $1000 less, pretty significant in in what was then the $4xxx and $5xxx
> base price ranges.
>
>
>
> >He talks about "tastefulness", but the car sure looks ugly.... *That curious
> >American penchant for mixing vinyl with metal in the roof...
>
> >DAS
> >(From London)
>
> Ugly? With Jaguar lamp treatment and a knock off Rolls grill? *<G>

The first Cordoba was very attractive (75-77, in fact). Then came the
messing with the styling. getting especially unattractive in 1980.

> For its time, the first-generation Cordoba was a very nice-looking car.

I thought so too, and think it has held up well, especially the first
few years with the round headlights and most especially the delete-
vinyl-roof option (unfortunately deleting a vinyl roof was against the
spirit of the times and not very common). They made it plainer and
ineffably cheaper-looking a couple of times as the years went by.
The "Corinthian" leather, of course, evoked a part of the bull other
than its tanned hide.

The *appearance* has held up well, that is. I don't see the actual
car very often anymore, even though it sold quite well back in the
day, and of course it was of a generation that gets too little respect
from collectors across the board.

Montalban maybe doesn't get enough respect either, but I think he
could really act when circumstances allowed, and was a big part of
making "The Wrath of Kahn" one of the best things in the Star Trek
franchise, albeit in the stagey style that typified the original
series and its movies. (And any of us should look even hallf as good
at sixtysomething!)

Among his lesser known side projects was something I associate with
road trips in a certain time and place in my life. He narrated
"Listen to New Mexico" -- few-minute vignettes of human and natural
history, broadcast in an infinite loop on low-power roadside
transmitters near the relevant sites, at frequencies just above or
below the normal broadcast band like 530 or 1610 kHz. A very
restrained and dignified performance, Alas, I suspect that both the
little radio transmitters and the funding program that ran them are
all gone.

--Joe

Joe Pfeiffer wrote:
> "Dori A Schmetterling" > writes:
>
>> This thread made me look up the commercial, not knowing what the car looked
>> like.
>>
>> Nice man, nice voice, shame about the car....
>>
>> He talks about "tastefulness", but the car sure looks ugly.... That curious
>> American penchant for mixing vinyl with metal in the roof...
>
> For its time, the first-generation Cordoba was a very nice-looking
> car.

Agreed. It was, for the time, rather minimalist and elegant. As someone
else said, all you have to do is look at contemporary GM "personal
luxury" cars or the Lincoln Mk V (especially in dark blue with a tan
naugahyde top... ack!) to see what constitutes overdone and tasteless. I
*still* prefer the long hood/short trunk look.

Ad absurdum per aspera wrote:
>> For its time, the first-generation Cordoba was a very nice-looking car.
<snip>
> The *appearance* has held up well, that is. I don't see the actual
> car very often anymore, even though it sold quite well back in the
> day, and of course it was of a generation that gets too little respect
> from collectors across the board.


Exactly- smogged-down low-compression engines were the main culprit.
Mechanically the first-gen Cordoba is a B-body, exactly the same as my
'73 Satellite that is still going after 460,000 miles. But no one wanted
a shell of a former muscle-car re-worked to be a cushy, somewhat
under-powered, and very non-economical "personal luxury" car. In fact,
that era pretty much was the end of the 2-door midsize car.

In article >,
Terry del Fuego > wrote:

> On Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:57:06 GMT, "Count Floyd"
> > wrote:
>
> >Long hood/short deck "luxury coupes" were the fad in the '70's.
>
> Incredibly stupid designs--I don't care what they looked like, but it
> drove me nuts that the cars were huge yet tended to have almost no
> room in the back seats. My first couple cars were ancient junkers,
> but they were considerably more comfortable than those 1970s boats for
> anyone actually riding in them.

I rented one in the 70s for a long highway drive.
It was lovely at 80+, but not what I'd buy for normal urban use.

Steve > writes:

> Joe Pfeiffer wrote:
>> "Dori A Schmetterling" > writes:
>>
>>> This thread made me look up the commercial, not knowing what the
>>> car looked like.
>>>
>>> Nice man, nice voice, shame about the car....
>>>
>>> He talks about "tastefulness", but the car sure looks ugly....
>>> That curious American penchant for mixing vinyl with metal in the
>>> roof...
>>
>> For its time, the first-generation Cordoba was a very nice-looking
>> car.
>
> Agreed. It was, for the time, rather minimalist and elegant. As
> someone else said, all you have to do is look at contemporary GM
> "personal luxury" cars or the Lincoln Mk V (especially in dark blue
> with a tan naugahyde top... ack!) to see what constitutes overdone and
> tasteless. I *still* prefer the long hood/short trunk look.

I like the Mk V.... the Mk VI was horrible.

Terry del Fuego > writes:

> On Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:57:06 GMT, "Count Floyd"
> > wrote:
>
>>Long hood/short deck "luxury coupes" were the fad in the '70's.
>
> Incredibly stupid designs--I don't care what they looked like, but it
> drove me nuts that the cars were huge yet tended to have almost no
> room in the back seats. My first couple cars were ancient junkers,
> but they were considerably more comfortable than those 1970s boats for
> anyone actually riding in them.

Nobody would ever argue they were space- weight- or fuel-efficient.
But they were pretty.

My '78 Newport is very comfortable to ride in -- now that I've got KYB
gas-charged shocks, a Trans-Go shift kit, and a Firm-Feel steering box
in it!

In article >, "Pete E. Kruzer" > wrote:
>Funeral Director Says Interior of Montalban Casket Made of Fine
>Corinthian Leather
Except there is no such thing a Corinthian Leather

On Fri, 16 Jan 2009 08:57:28 -0800, Terry del Fuego
> wrote:

>On Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:57:06 GMT, "Count Floyd"
> wrote:
>
>>Long hood/short deck "luxury coupes" were the fad in the '70's.
>
>Incredibly stupid designs--I don't care what they looked like, but it
>drove me nuts that the cars were huge yet tended to have almost no
>room in the back seats.

Remember the phrase "personal luxury cars"? These cars weren't
intended for the comfort of those in the back seat. If that was what
a person wanted, he bought a Newport four door... for about the same
money.


>My first couple cars were ancient junkers,
>but they were considerably more comfortable than those 1970s boats for
>anyone actually riding in them.

Don't know what you mean by "ancient junkers" and "70s boats". Could
you give me some examples of each?

On Fri, 16 Jan 2009 12:55:53 -0600, Steve > wrote:


>Exactly- smogged-down low-compression engines were the main culprit.
>Mechanically the first-gen Cordoba is a B-body, exactly the same as my
>'73 Satellite that is still going after 460,000 miles. But no one wanted
> a shell of a former muscle-car re-worked to be a cushy, somewhat
>under-powered, and very non-economical "personal luxury" car. In fact,
>that era pretty much was the end of the 2-door midsize car.


Well, nothing in that size class and configuration ever sold as well
for Chrysler after the first gen Cordoba. However, GM did quite will
with 2 door rear drive Cutlass Supreme's and Regals into the mid 80s.