September 4, 1957: Ford Introduces the Edsel

A 1958 Edsel Corsair

September 4, 1957: It is "E-Day" at the Ford Motor Company. They introduce a new line of cars, added to their established Ford, Mercury and Lincoln lines: The Edsel.

Under Henry Ford II, grandson of the company's founder -- the day also happened to be his 40th birthday -- the company's management came to realize that the Lincoln line really wasn't competing with General Motors' luxury Cadillac, as they had intended. Rather, people seemed to be comparing it to GM's middle-class Oldsmobile and Buick, and Chrysler's DeSoto.

So the plan was to emphasize Lincoln's luxury, and introduce a new line that, along with Ford and Mercury, would compete with GM's middle line. They decided to name it the Edsel, after Edsel B. Ford, the original Henry's son and intended successor, who had predeceased his father, dying of stomach cancer in 1943, only 49 years old. Henry II, Edsel's son, objected, but, with the company having become publicly traded in 1956, he was now answerable to a board of directors.

(His brother, William Clay Ford, was on that board, bought the NFL's Detroit Lions in 1961, owning them until his death in 2014. They didn't win a single NFL Championship in that time. His son, William Clay Ford Jr., owns the Lions now, and has been CEO of Ford Motor Company since 1999. Like his father, he produces a better product on the assembly line than he does on the gridiron.)

On E-Day, the Edsel was described as a "reborn LaSalle." That was a brand that GM had folded in 1940, although most of us not around at that time only know it from its mention in the theme song to the sitcom All In the Family.

Ford also bought an hourlong special (at the time, they were usually called "spectaculars"), The Edsel Show, that aired on CBS on October 13. Appearing were Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Bob Hope, Rosemary Clooney, and the decidedly non-rock vocal group The Four Preps. With the addition of television to the traditional sales methods of print and movie newsreels, the Edsel was the most-hyped line the history of the automotive industry.

But nobody wanted it. Someone saw the "horse-collar" grille, and thought it "resembled an Oldsmobile sucking a lemon." Otherwise, it seemed little different from other Ford cars: If you're going to buy a Ford, why buy one that looked like this?

There was also bad timing: Several car lines went under in that era: Studebaker and Hudson in 1954, Packard in 1958, and Nash and DeSoto in 1961.

It sold terribly, and in 1959, following the introduction of the 1960 models, the line was canceled. The Edsel was one of the biggest bombs in the history of American consumerism. Only 118,287 were made, and it is believed that, in 2022, only 6,000 are left.

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September 4, 1957 was a Wednesday. Actress Khandi Alexander was born.

These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Boston Red Sox, 7-5 at Yankee Stadium. Pete Daley won it with a home run in the top of the 11th inning, with a home run off Tommy Byrne. Ted Williams did not appear, and Mickey Mantle only did so as a pinch-hitter, failing to reach base. Oddly, Yogi Berra played right field, going 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

* The New York Giants beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2-0 at Forbes Field. Bob Friend pitches a 7-hit shutout. Roberto Clemente went 0-for-4, but so did Willie Mays.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 12-3 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Gil Hodges hit a home run. He, Pee Wee Reese, Carl Furillo, Charlie Neal and Don Zimmer each had 2 hits, in support of Don Newcombe.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Washington Senators, 1-0 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Joe Ginsberg won it with a sacrifice fly off Camilo Pascual in the bottom of the 10th inning. Jerry Walker pitched a 10-inning, 4-hit shutout. Brooks Robinson did not play.

* A doubleheader was split at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The Chicago Cubs won the opener, 1-0. Moe Drabowsky, later better known as a relief pitcher, pitched a 2-hit shutout. The Cincinnati Redlegs (as the Reds were known from 1954 to 1958) won the nightcap, 7-2. Over the 2 games, Ernie Banks and Frank Robinson both went 2-for-7 with an RBI, but Banks' RBI was a home run.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Braves, 5-4 at Busch Stadium (formerly Sportsman's Park) in St. Louis. Right fielder Bob Hazel made an error that cost the Braves the game in the bottom of the 12th inning. Hank Aaron went 1-for-5, and Eddie Mathews and Del Rice both hit home runs. Stan Musial did not play.

* And the Chicago White Sox, the Cleveland Indians, the Detroit Tigers and the Kansas City Athletics were not scheduled.