Transilvania 1963

Un set fantastic de imagini din 1963, facute de o familie din Ungaria calatorind prin Romania. Unele imagini au fost datate eronat ca fiind din 1959, fapt care, luand in vedere arhitectura, piata auto, autobuzele pe strazi, si placutele de inmatriculare scrise cu majuscule (si de BV, nu OS), nu poate fi corect. Vizionare - si identificare - placuta!

A fantastic set of images dating from 1963, taken by a Hungarian family visiting Romania. Some of the set was incorrectly dated as being from 1959 - looking at the architecture, the cars, the buses, and the number plates written in capital letters (therefore post-1960) this can't be correct. Happy viewing - and identifying!

TV, cheile Bicazului

Cluj

Cluj, taxiuri Moskvich 407 si Volga

Cluj cu un TV-4

Cluj, p-ta Mihai Viteazu

Gheorghieni, Skoda Octavia si SR-101

Splendid edificiu art nouveau in Tg Mures, cu un ARO

Tg Mures

Din nou cu o Volga

Statie PECO in Tg Mures - IMS 57 sau GAZ 69

Brasov, cu un camion mister - poate rusesc?

Cluj

Tg Mures, antebelica

 

Cluj, Wartburg

Oradea, Volga

Din nou

Taxiuri si autocar Skoda in Brasov

Sighisoara: Moskvich si Pobeda

Sighisoara din nou, cu o Pobeda in pana

Cluj

Brasov, cu 4x4

Din nou Brasov.

O decapotabila misterioasa / A mystery cabriolet (Salmson?)

In orice tara exista masini de lux sau de clasa inalta. Dar adevaratele masini de vis - cele care se vad la Villa d'Este sau Pebble Beach, in marile colectii din lume, sau la licitatii, pentru sume fabuloase - sunt si intotdeauna au fost mult mai rare. Dorinta de a avea ceva si unicat si de calitate este, din pacate, una care numai foarte putini isi permit.

Deci am ramas uimit cand, prin imagini preulate din filmul "Steaua fara nume" (1966), am gasit secvente cu o masina din aceasta clasa. Clar, e un model extrem de luxos, European, de la sfarsitul anilor 30. In plus, nu poarta caroserie de fabrica. Dupa calitatea designului, presupun ca avem de face cu opera unui mare carosier. O mare raritate, in alte cuvinte.

Ce o fi, totusi? M-am gandit la multe variante - Horch 930, Daimler, Lancia Astura - dar din toate variantele, Salmson S4-61 pare cel mai apropiat.

La identificarea carosierului treaba devine si mai complicata. Dupa mine anumite elemente (in mod special parbrizul si forma protbagajului) sunt tipice frantuzesti. Letourneur & Marchand? (Firma folosita de familia regala. Spatele Bugatti-ului de jos arata relative similar.) Franay? Pourtout? Cert nu Figoni & Falaschi care e mult mai ostentativ.

Din nou: ce cauta in Romania? Sa fi existat inainte de razboi? Sa fi venit din parcul regal? Sau sa fi fost trofeu de razboi? Si ce s-ar fi ales de ea?

...Cert este, e un mister interesant!


In any country there are high-end cars. But the true dream cars - those seen at Villa d'Este or Pebble Beach, or in the great collections of the world, or making fabulous sums at auction - those are much rarer. The desire of having something both high-end and unique is sadly one available to very few.

So I was amazed when, in some stills of the film "Star without name" (1966) this car turns up. Clearly, it is a very luxurious European model from the late 1930s. And coachbuilt. From the quality of the design, I would imagine it is from one of the great coachbuilding houses. A real rarity, in other words.

But what could it be? I thought of several possibilities - Horch 930, Daimler, Lancia Astura - and of all of them, the Salmson S4-61 looks closest.

The coachbuilder is equally difficult. Certain aspects of the design (especially the windscreen and the rear treatment) seem to me to be typical French practice. So Letourneur and Marchand (much favoured by the Romanian royals - and with not a dissimilar treatment seen in the Bugatti below)? Franay? Pourtout? Certainly not Figoni and Falaschi who were much more ostentatious.

And what was it doing in Romania? Was it there before the war? Perhaps a former royal car? Or maybe a war trophy? Either way, what happened to it?

Well, it's an interesting mystery...

 

S-a furat o bomba (1961) / A bomb has been stolen (1961)

Scene din filmul "S-a furat o bomba", turnat in 1961 in Romania, regia Ion Popoescu-Gopo. Mai multe despre film aici.

Foarte interesant in domeniul automobilistic, filmul arata cateva din masinile cele mai interesante care existau in 1961 pe soselele romanesti. Cum am mai scris, existau cateva modele extreme de surprinzatoare pe sosele. Presupun ca unele apartineau marilor actori, altele erau prorpietatea casei de filme, iar altele erau imprumutate... Totusi unele modele, spre exemplu Cadillac, Alfa, Ford Fairlane si Fiat 1800, ar fi fost nou noute. Nu rau pentru o tara in mijlocul comunismului!

Scenes from the film "A Bomb has been stolen", filmed in 1961 in Romania and directed by Ion Popescu-Gopo.

An extremely interesting from an automotive point of view, as it shows some of the more exotic vehicles circulating in 1961 Romania. As I have written before, some of the cars in that era were very surprising indeed. I suppose some were major actors' private cars, others belonged to the studio, and others were borrowed ... However, some, notably the Cadillac, Alfa, Ford Fairlane and Fiat 1800, would have been brand new at the time. Not bad for a country in the throes of Communism!

TV-4 vazut din spate. Nu am vazut vreodata poze atat de clare din acest unghi.

Cadillac 1960. Sa fie cel folosit ulterior de Ceausescu pana in 1978?

FIAT 1800B nou nout

TV si GAZ 69

FIAT 1100 - nu stiu sa fi surpavietuit asa ceva in Romania. Numerele, facute pentru film sunt foarte ciudate.

Opel Kapitan, masina care inca exista in cateva exemplare, unele in stare buna

Alfa Romeo Giulietta ...

... si un Chevrolet 1953

Citroen ID (sau DS) si Opel

Mercedes Ponton si prima masina importata official aici, Skoda Felicia

O americanca mai moderna: Ford Fairlane 1960

Saviem, se pare

Autocar Chausson, o prezenta cunoscuta in acea perioada

Inca un Kapitan

Buick 1951 - masina de inalt communist

Jawa, cu numere de Bucuresti

Uratenia asta este IFA H3B, fost autobus de la inceputul anilor 50

Poze deprimante din Bucurestiul anului 1986 / Depressing Bucharest pictures from 1986

O serie de diapozitive surprinse de un architect American in 1986. De remarcat cat de deprimant arata Bucurestiul. Culorile sunt amarate, strazile pustii, lumea lipista de eleganta. Masinile sunt in mod general Dacia, desi remarcam un Fiat 1800, un Renault Gordini si - cel mai special - un Mercedes Cobra. Ultima poza, surprinsa cu 15 ani inainte in 1971 din acelasi unghi (de Willy Pragher), arata cat de cat diferenta.

A set of slides taken by an American architect in 1986, showing a very depressing Bucharest. The colours are muted, the streets deserted, the people inelegant. Cars are generally Dacias, although we can see a Fiat 1800, a Renault "Gordini" and, most unusually, a Mercedes Cobra. The last photo, taken from the same angle fifteen years previously (by Willy Pragher) shows how much things have changed.