Volvos can be cool
Published: Thu, 05/15/14
I saw an old Volvo in town yesterday, it was a P130 and must have
been made sometime before 1966 when that model was replaced by the
more angular looking 144 model (links at the bottom if you want to
read more). Apart from it being nice to see an old car on the road
I was reminded of the Volvo P1800 which was a sports car which
Volvo produced from 1960 onwards. This particular model was very
well known in the 1960s because it was featured in the very popular
TV series 'The Saint' with a young Roger Moore. He was
meant to be a very cool character and the Volvo actually suited him
perfectly and for Volvo it was a terrific piece of what we now call
'product placement'.
The story goes that as the show was being created Jaguar were
approached for loan of an Etype for the main character to drive.
Apparently this was turned down so someone had the bright idea of
going to Volvo instead for a p1800, it made the character of the
Saint seem just a little bit cooler and non-conformist and was
fantastic free advertising for Volvo.
When the Return of the Saint was made in 1978 with Ian Olgilvy
Jaguar did not miss their chance this time and the updated
character drove a white XJS, not really the same as an Etype and a
very conventional choice compared with the Volvo.
I am always interested in stories of missed opportunities. I
wonder how many junior editors at publishing companies take guilty
secrets to their grave. Publisher asks, "Did that J K Rowling
send us her manuscript for Harry Potter?" Junior editor,
"Oh no sir I would have seen the potential if I had read it I
am sure." Knowing perfectly well that they had read two pages
and sent it back marked 'not for us'.
A great many things in life, whether it is trying to grow a big
business, or just getting someone to come out on a date, depend
upon getting other people to respond to us. It is easy to give up
and get discouraged when we are rejected. No one wants to become a
nuisance but the greatest reason for failure is lack of
perseverance. Just because someone says no or seems to ignore you
now doesn't mean that they always will. Or perhaps you just
need to be asking someone else. Roger Moore in the Volvo was
somehow just right, driving an Etype would just have been too
obvious.
And in case anyone is ready for Stav training in the next few
months, next day course is on the 7th of June in Crewkerne and the
full list of dates is a
http://www.iceandfire.org.uk/forthcoming.html
regards
Graham
In case you don't know what a P1800 looks like and want to know
http://www.volvoclub.org.uk/history/p120.shtml