Ira Gilford, Harry Bradley
Background
Ira Gilford — Ira Bailey Gilford worked at Mattel from 1967 to about 1970 as a Hot Wheels designer, recommended for the position by Harry Bradley, the brand's first designer. Before that, he worked at Chrysler. He is credited with the Twin Mill, described as the first original Hot Wheels design, and also with The Spoilers, The Heavys and a large number of 1969 cars.
Today he works as an independent contractor in digital arts and as a painter.
Harry Bradley — Harry Bentley Bradley (died 2023) was an automobile designer. He studied at the College of Wooster and the Pratt Institute (industrial design) and worked at General Motors from 1962 to 1966. In 1966 he joined Mattel, where he created the die-cast miniature line launched in 1968 as Hot Wheels, and he left the company in 1969 to open his own studio.
For years he collaborated with the Alexander Brothers customizers (including the Alexa and the Dodge Deora), designed the 1995 version of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile and taught at the Art Center College of Design.
