The arrival of the atomic age brought a wave of bright-eyed futurism in American culture. While rayguns and flashy finned spaceships were already a staple of gaudy SF pulp fiction from the 1930s, the postwar economic boom and rise of advertising saw these fevered dreams seep over into reality.
My own fascination with Americana had already landed me two examples from Scripto’s Satellite series of ballpoints and twist pencils from around 1957:
Featuring a smoothly streamlined silhouette that tapered to a rakish chopped off end, and that gorgeous scalloped cutout on gleaming chrome. Grey wasn’t my first choice of color but it seemed appropriately muted, like a black and white image from the past.
As for a matching car, I came across this Greenlight model of the Lincoln Futura in its original showroom pearlescent white and it checked all the boxes for me. Designed by Bill Schmidt for the Ford Motor Company in 1955, the twin bubble canopy and long fins made it the perfect candidate to be quickly customized by George Barris into the even more famous Batmobile of 1966.
Turning to the rear view, the art decor-ish finial of the Satellite seems to mirror the lines on the Futura and I couldn’t wish for a better match-up
. I don’t think of myself as a serious collector of American pens or mechanical pencils but when design and aesthetics pique my own interests, I happily make room for them.
