--- title: National Automobile Show: Photos From 1957 Auto Show description: Auto shows back in the 1950s looked a bit different from the North American International Auto Show, not least of all thanks to the models. canonical: https://time.com/4167934/national-automobile-show-1957/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-13T13:00:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:00:40.309Z og:title: How Auto Shows of the Past Revved Up Excitement og:description: Auto shows back in the 1950s looked a bit different from the North American International Auto Show, not least of all thanks to the models. og:url: https://time.com/4167934/national-automobile-show-1957/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltee143268a70276f8/69887792428a9e36a9cd0cab/160105-1957-car-show-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: 1956 New York Auto Show og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How Auto Shows of the Past Revved Up Excitement twitter:description: Auto shows back in the 1950s looked a bit different from the North American International Auto Show, not least of all thanks to the models. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltee143268a70276f8/69887792428a9e36a9cd0cab/160105-1957-car-show-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How Auto Shows of the Past Revved Up Excitement > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription.  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Jan 13, 2016 1:00 PM UTC  Caption from LIFE. Stepping stones over a rippling pool provide the approach to a La Parisienne Pontiac hardtop. Caption from LIFE. Stepping stones over a rippling pool provide the approach to a La Parisienne Pontiac hardtop. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Jan 13, 2016 1:00 PM UTC In Detroit this week, automakers are unveiling the [cars of the future](http://time.com/4176349/detroit-auto-show-naias-2016/): vehicles connected to the Internet, all electric and hooked into networks of apps. The North American International Auto Show, which runs from Jan. 11 through Jan. 24, continues a long tradition of convening leading manufacturers and industry experts to analyze trends and wow auto enthusiasts with the newest models. But much has changed since the early days of car shows, one of which LIFE’s Walter Sanders captured for a photo essay in 1957. The National Automobile Show, held at the now-demolished New York Coliseum, featured an older kind of pageantry. Before the days of high-tech, automakers drew attention with models posing as hood ornaments and “a thirty-minute musical revue” called “‘America on the Move,” repeated six times daily. A new vehicle model was rarely seen unaccompanied by a live human model, clad in a regal dress as she pointed out its features. “The color motif of turquoise, gold and red-orange mirrored the jaunty mood of the automobile industry,” the magazine declared. It’s a mood that is, in some ways, reflected at this year’s show, as automakers celebrate a record-setting year in the sale of new cars. And though a new crop of models shows off today’s newfangled autos, they have to compete for attention with the shiny, new tech toys that attempt to steal the show—sometimes from the cars themselves. _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk)_._  Caption from LIFE. Honking sextet takes place before model instrument panels while crowd in Coliseum lobby awaits horn blasts that will open motor exhibition. Tooters from left are E.J. Bush, vice president of Diamond T Motor Car Co., representing manufacturers; Harold Churchill, president of Studebaker-Packard; General Motors' Curtice; Henry Ford II, president of Ford Motor Co.; L.L. Colbert, president of Chyrsler Corporation; American Motors' president, George Romney. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. In main arena, one of three floors, crowds roaming through the exhibits are shown in time exposure. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Living ornament, Jean Littleton, adorns hood of a De Soto convertible on a rotating platform. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. A crowd gathers to see a heavy-duty Dodge, one of several trucks in the Power Giant line. The model explaining to a male audience that trucks come with push-button controls like passenger cars. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Attentive boy, William Postman, is invited by model to see $12,000 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Stepping stones over a rippling pool provide the approach to a La Parisienne Pontiac hardtop. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A model shows off a 1957 Ford model at the National Automobile Show at the New York Coliseum. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Cars are exhibited on multiple levels, 1957. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  The interior of a new Cadillac is equipped with a writing desk and typewriter (obscured), on display at the National Automobile Show in 1957. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A model introduces a 1957 Dodge truck as boys look on with interest. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A fountain on display at the New York Coliseum, 1957. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Favorite attraction for youngsters, a Mack fire truck, is explored by Jay and Felice Shulman. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. In ski clothes girls display a Pontiac station wagon loaded with equipment for a winter outing. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Happy try-out of a Chevrolet convertible is made by boy who sits on its power-operated seat. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Swarm takes over a truck. Boys are exploring the high cab which is above its diesel engine. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A young girl waits by the Lincoln display at the National Automobile Show in 1957. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Women admire the interior of a car on display at the National Automobile Show, 1957. Walter Sanders—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Sleepy sightseer, 3-year-old Kevin Coogan Jr. folds up in his dad's arms before Chyrsler 300C. 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