uman hood ornaments have been a staple of automobile trade shows since at least the 1920s, when the Packard Motor Co. employed a dance troupe to strike poses on top of its cars. Continuing the girls-on-the-hood tradition at the 1963 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Chrysler Corp. hired a model to promote its new Plymouth Barracuda. Sprawled like a salmon on the muscle car's hood and dressed in a sequined, mermaid-like gown, the model's fishy behavior helped ensure the Barracuda would reel in the media and public alike.