Cadillac & LaSalle Club Discussion Forum

Cadillac & LaSalle Club Forums => General Discussion => Topic started by: Rich S on December 08, 2024, 10:00:12 PM

Title: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Rich S on December 08, 2024, 10:00:12 PM
This popped-up on my suggested videos on youtube. It shows a Cadillac dealership party featuring a gorgeous 1973 Eldorado Convertible in Saturn Bronze Firemist with White Leather interior and people enjoying the festivities of the Christmas Party! Here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EonRu0dAWA
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Highwayman68 on December 09, 2024, 09:07:37 AM
Thanks for sharing.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: z3skybolt on December 09, 2024, 04:59:13 PM
A bygone era..........
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Vince Taliano #13852 on December 09, 2024, 06:48:21 PM
Check out the rare Cadillac Rain Lamp at the 1:33 mark!

Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Jason Edge on December 09, 2024, 07:41:15 PM
That is a fantastic video, considering the year recorded. Someone had some decent video gear on hand for this Christmas party. With a little editing to take out shadow, color fad, brighten and sharpen a tad, this would be really be nice quality.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Michael Petti on December 10, 2024, 06:23:56 AM
Great video. A lost era of grace and elegance.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: J. Skelly on December 10, 2024, 11:44:43 AM
A rain lamp was on Antiques Roadshow (PBS) a few years ago.  I don't recall what it sold for.  As I recall, the owner said it was one on display at the Cadillac exhibit for several auto shows.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: TJ Hopland on December 11, 2024, 12:34:03 PM
Could you imagine a dealer doing something like that today?

Has that Eldo got the right hubcaps on it?  The resolution isn't very good but they kinda look like 67-68 caps with the big cutouts?   69 and up didn't have cutouts?

The resolution is so poor that its hard to tell what it was originally.  72 there really wasn't home video yet so if it was shot on video it was more or less professional gear, maybe an enthusiast that was able to borrow the stuff from work?  It also wasn't really portable but there isn't a lot of movement in any of the shots where they could not have been teathered to the recorder which the most compact would have been something like a Umatic system.

At some point it was on film, several scenes you can see white spots which would have been dust on a negative.  That doesn't mean it wasn't shot on video then transferred to film then back to video at some point.  That would explain why the quality is so bad.  Both 8mm and 16mm could have had live sound recording in the camera so the apparently synced sound doesn't really help narrow it down. 
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Carfreak on December 11, 2024, 09:38:38 PM
Quote from: J. Skelly on December 10, 2024, 11:44:43 AMA rain lamp was on Antiques Roadshow (PBS) a few years ago.  I don't recall what it sold for.  As I recall, the owner said it was one on display at the Cadillac exhibit for several auto shows.

https://pbswisconsin.org/watch/antiques-roadshow/appraisal-cadillac-trade-show-rain-lamp-ca-1968-3xaln4/
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: SteveB3155 on December 24, 2024, 08:49:46 AM
What a great video.  My father was the GM of the Cadillac/Olds dealership in Plymouth, MA from 1967-1977.  I'd go in with him on many Saturdays and just hang out in the showroom, literally crawling through the new cars.  A lot of the signage in the video brings back great memories.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Mike Josephic CLC #3877 on December 26, 2024, 05:24:27 PM
Wow -- talk about a trip down memory lane.  I bought
my 1973 Eldorado in April of 1973, so I know the era
well.  Yes, the hubcaps are correct.  Listening to
the music, looking at the clothes, the "hair" the
dancing, reminds me that I really am 75 years old!!
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: TJ Hopland on December 26, 2024, 05:57:00 PM
Must just be the low res on a small screen landing in the right places that made me think the hubcaps were wrong.  I also didn't go back and watch the whole video looking at ever shot of that car so there could have been shots where they were clearer and I just didn't notice since they would not have looked out of place.
Title: Re: Video: 1972 Christmas Party at Cadillac Dealer
Post by: Tom Hall 7485 on May 04, 2025, 08:45:50 PM
Thank you for this. I wasn't aware of it.

The African-American man at 0:40 seconds and 2:00 is Al Johnson, who was the first African-American to get a Cadillac dealership! He was the boss at this dealership, which was in Illinois. At the service department of Fields Cadillac in Evanston, IL, I occasionally washed Cadillacs that were sold new at Al Johnson Cadillac!