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What role did Raymond
Loewy play in the development and design of the famous
Coke bottle? Some believe that the Coca-Cola bottle was designed
by Raymond Loewy, which is a myth.
People mistake Loewy's admiration
for the bottle's design with his design of the bottle. When
you visit the World
of Coca Cola in Atlanta, Georgia,
one of the things you see is the cast for the original contour
bottle, along with an inscription that says, "World famous
designer Raymond Loewy said, The
Coke bottle is the most perfectly designed package in the
world."
The bottle controversy has always been
a sore spot with some historians. Raymond
Loewy Associates worked for Coca-Cola during the late
1940's through the mid-1950's and again through most of the
1960's. The original contour of the "Mae West" bottle was
designed in 1915. Loewy came to the
United States in 1919. He did not design the original bottle.
He never said he did. But he always associated himself with
it. The myth of Loewy designing the
original Coke bottle lives on.
Loewy did create
designs for the Coca-Cola Company. He was responsible for
designing the Dole Delux Dispenser in 1947, as well as the
Dole Super Dispenser in 1951. He was also hired by the company
to create a new bottle and logo for the Fanta brand. Loewy
also applied for patents for his designs for a Coca-Cola "refrigerator"
(a standing cooler) in 1945; an "ornamental design for a truck
body" in 1946; and a beverage dispenser with an "ornamental
design" in 1946. Ten years later (1956), he also designed
a bottle opener that caught the bottle caps. Raymond
Loewy did redesign the Coke bottle. The bottle
has undergone several redesigns in its 100-plus years. Loewy
did a redesign in 1954. An original blueprint of the Coca
Cola bottle from Loewy's office is
dated 1954.
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