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© John Malmin, ca. 1969, A sea of Volkswagen vehicles

A sea of Volkswagen vehicles – mostly the famous Beetle model — sit at Terminal Island after unloading from a ship. In 1969, Beetle sales in the United States peaked at 367,607. By 1977, the model had been discontinued — annual sales having dropped below 50,000.  Taken from the Goodyear blimp, this image by staff photographer John Malmin was published as stand-alone art in the Jan. 13, 1969, L.A. Times.

The Volkswagen was officially named the KdF-Wagen by Hitler when the project was officially announced in 1938. The name refers to ‘Kraft durch Freude’ (‘Strength Through Joy’), the official leisure organization of the Third Reich. After World War II, the car was known as the Volkswagen Type 1, but became more commonly known as the Beetle.

Just before the start of the Second World War, Tatra had ten legal claims filed against VW for infringement of patents. Although Ferdinand Porsche (who developed the car) was about to pay a settlement to Tatra, he was stopped by Hitler who said he would “solve his problem”. Tatra launched a lawsuit, but this was stopped when Germany invaded Czechoslovakia in 1938, resulting in the Tatra factory coming under Nazi administration in October 1938.

“Er läuft und läuft und läuft…” - Volkswagen commercial, 1960s: