Harley Earl lived from 1893 to 1969 and has certainly gone down in the history books as one of the most important figures in automotive design. Harley was born in California, and that's where he first got into designing custom cars for movie stars and such, working for his father's carriageworks. He made a big splash at GM when he joined them in late 1926 and designed the 1927 La Salle.
Harley Earl headed GM's Art and Colour Section for decades and was in charge of styling. This means he oversaw the overall stylistic development of the automobiles produced at GM during the "Golden Era" of the 1930s through 1950s. Harley's principal idea was that cars should be made to look longer, lower, and sleeker. He signed off on Frank Hershey's design of the 1948 Cadillac (the tail fins were Hershey's idea).
He personally designed the original Corvette in 1953.
One of Harley's personal favourites was the original Le Sabre, which he kept for himself.
He was a snappy dresser and a large man who could be intimidating.
updated December 11th, 2003 by Jan Chciuk-Celt