Why the Yellow Taxi Is Such a Great American Icon

Why the Yellow Taxi Is Such a Great American Icon

I will start by asking a simple question. What is an icon and how do we define an icon? What would it mean if I was to say that something was iconic? You would say that it is something instantly recognizable, an image, a building, a symbol, or anything which represents something of huge cultural importance to a wide group of people.

Take for example the Eiffel Tower. There is nothing else which can better embody and symbolize Paris and France. When we look at the Eiffel Tower we see romance, culture, and sophistication in an instant, and again every time you look. This is what Paris represents to people, and the Eiffel Tower is what represents Paris and no further words are necessary. This is what defines a great icon.

The yellow taxi, with or without the checkered stripe, is a great American icon as much as the Statue of Liberty, or the American Hamburger. Whereas the Statue of Liberty represents freedom, hope and prosperity, key ideals of America; the yellow taxi represents the efficiency, ever-readiness and capitalistic side of American life.

The yellow taxi was created by John Hertz nearly 100 years ago when he successfully founded the Yellow Cab Company of Chicago. The yellow taxis were then brought into service in New York City. John Hertz chose yellow as the color for the cabs to be as people felt they were easier to spot.

Certainly in the great cities of America such as Boston, Chicago and of course New York City, yellow taxis are a very prominent feature. The roads here are littered throughout, with these yellow beacons either taking or looking for passengers. This is truer in none more so than of course New York City, with over ten thousand taxis in service all day and through the night. Again, here the yellow taxi doesn't just symbolize America, but also of New York City itself. American films like Taxi Driver by Martin Scorsese or the comedy sitcom Taxi have no doubt played their role in cultivating this imagery. Like the Eiffel Tower being in at least one shot whenever a movie is set in Paris, the yellow taxi is bound to be included in a shot whenever a movie is set in New York. Indeed the yellow color of the taxi has become a symbol of itself. If you were to ask people to think of things that are yellow, they are bound of think of firstly a banana, and then probably a yellow cab.

These images have permeated themselves so well into people's minds, making the yellow taxi, truly one of the great American icons today.

Franny is a professional adviser helping businesses with their marketing online. Currently he is helping Yellow Cab Seattle, a travel advice website, with their marketing. For more information about Yellow Cab Seattle, please visit their website.

by Franny Dolarhyde; Tuesday, December 20, 2011 @ 06:20 PM [62]

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