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Harley Earl

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Designer

The Resume

    (November 22, 1893-April 10, 1969)
    Born in Hollywood, California
    Automotive designer
    Named first director of the Art and Color Division (later renamed the Styling Division) of General Motors (1927)
    Created the first concept car, the Buick Y-Job (1938)

Why he might be annoying:

    He kept a second wardrobe so he could change before the cocktail hour if any of his clothes had gotten wrinkled during the day.
    By constantly changing designs, he encouraged people to replace perfectly functional cars.
    His 50s designs, flaunting tailfins and tons of chrome, epitomized styling run amok.
    An actor portraying him (or his ghost) was used by Buick for a series of less than successful ads (2002-03) that never really explained who Earl was. (Not to mention why the new designs he was allegedly inspiring at Buick were so much worse than his old ones.)

Why he might not be annoying:

    He began by customizing cars for Hollywood stars like Fatty Arbuckle and Tom Mix.
    He introduced the practice of sculpting new designs in modeling clay.
    Who cares if tailfins and chrome were impractical? The public loved it.
    In addition to looking better, his cars produced a smoother, more comfortable ride.
    He was nicknamed 'the da Vinci of Detroit.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 9 Votes: 77.78% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 12 Votes: 41.67% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 14 Votes: 14.29% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 29 Votes: 44.83% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 12 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 20 Votes: 55.00% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 16 Votes: 43.75% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 22 Votes: 59.09% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 19 Votes: 36.84% Annoying