The reverberations from that legal filing, and the iconic automaker's troubles, were felt in different ways around the region, from car dealerships to suppliers to customers. Times sure have changed.

The waiting room at Rohrich Cadillac on West Liberty Avenue in Dormont is usually dotted with customers hanging out and watching the overhead TV as their vehicles are being serviced.

Yesterday, the space was filled with dealership employees who took a few minutes in the midst of the workday to watch the broadcast of President Barack Obama's news conference regarding General Motors' bankruptcy filing.

A hush came over the room as everyone absorbed the prognosis that they had known for some time. Salesmen and managers looked grim -- but not surprised -- as the president spoke about GM's restructuring and his vision for the future of the U.S. automobile industry,

"It's unfortunate," said Thomas Rohrich, president of the dealership that has been in his family for three generations. "But most people who are aware of the situation were expecting it."

Mr. Rohrich is not worried about the future of Cadillac, which has done well in the luxury car segment. In contrast to the dealerships for GM brands that are being phased out, he expects his dealership to expand.

The restructuring, he believes, will benefit the corporation. "GM is making the right decisions to become a strong competitor in the international market," Mr. Rohrich said.

"I feel a surge of confidence in GM," said customer Michael Civiletti, who has been a Cadillac customer for his entire life. "We're on the right track."

At Cochran GM, the Monroeville auto megamall, a half-dozen people -- both employees and customers -- also watched Mr. Obama's speech on a large-screen TV.

As Mr. Obama outlined the government's plan to become the company's largest stockholder, a middle-aged woman said, to no one in particular, "Why doesn't he make the CEOs give back all the money they took?"

When the president promised that warranties on GM would continue in force, an employee who looked to be in his 20s nodded and walked off, as if that were all he needed to hear.

Owner Rob Cochran does not expect the dealership to downsize its staff or to make major changes to its physical layout. "We really expect as we work through this that our market opportunity will be the same as what it historically has been," he said.

Calling GM's bankruptcy "the least surprising bankruptcy in the history of the United States," he said: "The fact that the government is so strongly behind the success of General Motors is good for General Motors and good for the stakeholders of General Motors -- us being one of them."

Suppliers, too, will be affected by the bankruptcy reorganization process that GM set in motion yesterday. Among the top creditors listed in the company's filing were Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel, owed $9.59 million; Luxembourg-based steelmaker Arcelor Mittal, owed $9.55 million; and AK Steel Holding Corp., owed $9.12 million.

PPG Industries, which supplies automotive coatings to GM, said yesterday that the impact of the carmaker's bankruptcy filing on its business should be minimal.

"PPG has been working with GM over the past several months, and at this point, our receivables are very low," said Jeremy Neuhart, spokesman for the Pittsburgh-based paint and glass maker.

Among the paint products PPG sells to auto and truck manufacturers are primers, base coats, clearcoats, pretreatment chemicals and sealants.

Citing sluggish sales and global economic conditions, PPG in March announced a restructuring plan that included closing plants and slashing about 6 percent of its work force, or about 2,500 jobs. Last year, it shed about 1,300 jobs, and shuttered coatings and glass plants in Illinois, Canada and the Netherlands.

The company reduced its exposure to the glass segment of the car business last year when it sold off 60 percent of its automotive glass and services business to a new company, Pittsburgh Glass Works. That venture, which has plants in Creighton; Tipton, Blair County; and Meadville, Crawford County, makes windshields, rear and side windows, sunroofs and replacement glass.

For some, the bankruptcy brought back memories of some glory days.

August 1967 was the summer of love for Art Pollock. He couldn't take his eyes off that gorgeous, golden body. And he couldn't help but notice that removable top. The only problem -- this particular gal belonged to his brother, David.

It was a 1967 Pontiac GTO convertible, signet gold, gold interior, slender and boxy, just off the lot at Clark Pontiac in Wilkinsburg. David kept it on the road for 26 years, driving it from point A to point B.

"He didn't look at it as unique or special," brother Art said.

But Art did. He soon bought a GTO of his own, black, a 1969 model. He bought other cars, including a 1973 Chevrolet Corvette, also a GM nameplate. Yet he always remembered the moment he first laid eyes on the 1967 GTO. His brother had put down $10 to hold it. Those were the days.

In 1994, David called. He said, "Art, I'm getting rid of the car."

Art said, "No, you can't."

And that's how Art ended up with the 1967 Pontiac GTO with the signet gold body, rusted and road-driven. Someday, Art promised, he'd restore the thing to its original sparkle. Three years ago, he did, but David died before Art could finish fixing up the car.

Pontiac is passing away, too, now that General Motors has decided to send the fabled brand to the junk yard. It's the same fate that befell another GM brand, Oldsmobile, that churned out some of the first muscle cars, Starfires and 442s.

"Chrysler and GM, these nameplates that have been part of all of my life -- it just seems sad seeing them dismantled," Art said.

Larry Furlong's dad was a Chevy man. Larry Furlong was a "Bonanza" kid. And once a year, the two interests intersected.

In those days, the 1960s, it was more common for a television show to be sponsored by a single advertiser, and "Bonanza" was often sponsored by GM's Chevrolet line. Usually those ads would air within the show, during commercial breaks, but once a year, on a Sunday in September, "Bonanza" would broadcast uninterrupted by commercials.

Instead, Chevy would air a five- or six-minute ad preceding the show, promoting the new models for that year.

"Welcome to Virginia City," Lorne Greene (Ben Cartwright) says in one of them. "Although I guess we should call it Chevrolet City. Because this is where we'll begin to show you the exceptionally exciting lineup of new 1965 cars from Chevrolet."

A red Corvette Sting Ray spun through the dirt streets of Virginia City. A Corvair appeared on the set of "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." The cast of "Bewitched" pitched the 1965 Chevelle and a Chevy II.

Staying up late on those Sunday nights was a treat for the younger Mr. Furlong, now of Mars. "That was a pretty big deal back then," he said in an e-mail.