Googie

I came across an obituary today for Eldon Davis, who died last week at the age of 94. He was one of the famous* Googie architects. I love the Googie style. I hate the name though. I feel so ridiculous saying it. I feel like I'm producing baby talk. The architecture style came before the name -- one of the first Googie buildings was the coffee shop "Googies" that was designed by architect John Lautner. After that, the style started to be referred to as Googie architecture.

(*As famous as a Googie architect could be).

You probably know of Googie architecture whether you realize it or not. It originated in the late 1940s but really took off in the 50s and 60s. The aesthetic was very "futuristic" and "space-aged". Lots of bright colors. Starbursts. Think of 60s motels, coffeshops, drive-ins, bowling alleys -- especially in Southern California and Las Vegas. The Space Needle is an example of Googie architecture. The iconic "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign is Googie. The original Disneyland had a Googie-inspired Tomorrowland. I love the Googie style. I love its colors, its kitschy-ness, and it's dated-ness. Buildings like that are so dated now (you see a building like that and you know it's a relic from the 50s or 60s), despite the fact that these buildings were supposed to be futuristic. I love the 1950s/1960s idea of futuristic design.    

Googie makes me think of vintage postcards.

Examples of the Googie style:

Tomorrowland at Disneyland

The Theme Building at LAX Airport

For those that check out my Shared Items page, you might remember these great pictures of the TWA Terminal, another example of Googie architecture.