Volkswagen Beetle - Portrait Of A Legend

Author: Edwin Baaske, Hardbound, 142 pages, ISBN: 9780837601625, 1st English Language Edition, 1997

- A must read for all Volkswagen enthusiasts, the first English translation of a German classic !

1995 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the rebirth of the Volkswagen factory after the end of the Second World War. Just days after the renaming of the city to Wolfsburg, workers began the production process anew. The car for the people had, however, already been introduced ten years earlier. At the opening of the alpine road near the Grossglockner (the highest peak in Austria), a Beetle prototype (VVV30) was shown to the public for the very first time.
The Beetle became the best selling car in the world—in spite of its shameful past in Nazi Germany and its modest restart after the war. Volkswagen Beetle: Portrait of a Legend does not attempt
to explain the reason for the Beetle's success in words—the pictures themselves tell the story. They describe the era in which the Beetle was born and how it became a symbol of the miracle of modern technology. Like a trip down memory lane, the photographs evoke memories and emotions from our past. The book also allows us a trip around the globe: after all, the Beetle was the first true world car.
Impressive production photos from Volkswagen's archives as well as many from private collections create an unforgettable portrait of the early years of this legend. The hard work of the early years is juxtaposed with the later years of elegant styling: an exciting, occasionally melancholic study of an icon's rise to fame.