One defining event of 1950s American car culture was General Motors’ traveling Motorama.

It was a truly extraordinary, no-expense-spared display of dazzling technology, stunning styling, and modern American ingenuity.

The series of dramatic styling exercises by the legendary Harley Earl captivated the public, but most of the designs were never made for sale.

For 1953, though, GM made an exception.

The company offered three of the previous year’s “dream cars” in limited production numbers to the lucky few who could afford the staggering price tags and had the personal influence required to secure one from “the General.” The three models available were the Cadillac Series 62 Eldorado, the Buick Roadmaster Skylark, and the car offered here, the Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Fiesta.

Though all three were produced in very limited numbers, the scarcest of all was the Oldsmobile “98” Fiesta, which cost an astonishing $5,715.

It was, and remains to this day, a stunning design that pioneered se...