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N0KFQ > TODAY 17.04.16 16:19l 53 Lines 2521 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 90976_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Apr 17
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N0KFQ
Sent: 160417/1407Z 90976@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ1.4.65
1964
Ford Mustang debuts at World's Fair
The Ford Mustang, a two-seat, mid-engine sports car, is
officially unveiled by Henry Ford II at the World's Fair in
Flushing Meadows, New York, on April 17, 1964. That same day, the
new car also debuted in Ford showrooms across America and almost
22,000 Mustangs were immediately snapped up by buyers. Named for
a World War II fighter plane, the Mustang was the first of a type
of vehicle that came to be known as a "pony car." Ford sold more
than 400,000 Mustangs within its first year of production, far
exceeding sales expectations.
The Mustang was conceived as a "working man's Thunderbird,"
according to Ford. The first models featured a long hood and
short rear deck and carried a starting price tag of around
$2,300. Ford general manager Lee Iacocca, who became president of
the company in October 1964 (and later headed up Chrysler, which
he was credited with reviving in the 1980s) was involved in the
Mustang's development and marketing. The car's launch generated
great interest. It was featured on the covers of Newsweek and
Time magazines and the night before it went on sale, the Mustang
was featured in commercials that ran simultaneously on all three
major television networks. One buyer in Texas reportedly slept at
a Ford showroom until his check cleared and he could drive his
new Mustang home. The same year it debuted, the Mustang appeared
on the silver screen in the James Bond movie "Goldfinger." A
green 1968 Mustang 390 GT was famously featured in the 1968 Steve
McQueen movie "Bullitt," in a car chase through the streets of
San Francisco. Since then, Mustangs have appeared in hundreds of
movies.
Within three years of its debut, some 500 Mustang fan clubs had
cropped up. In March 1966, the 1 millionth Mustang rolled off the
assembly line. In honor of the Mustang's 35th anniversary in
1999, the U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp commemorating the
original model. In 2004, Ford built its 300 millionth car, a 2004
Mustang GT convertible 40th anniversary model. The 2004 Mustangs
were the final vehicles made at the company's Dearborn production
facility, which had been building Mustangs since their debut.
(Assembly then moved to a plant in Flat Rock, Michigan.)
Over the decades, the Mustang underwent numerous evolutions, and
it remains in production today, with more than 9 million sold.
73 - K.O., n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-Mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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