Oddly enough, you only appreciate how elegant the 747 is now it's being replaced by much uglier, more utilitarian efforts. The A380 is an ugly lump of a thing and the Dreamliner just looks fat.
The BAC 1-11 was the first aeroplane I ever flew on. I seem to remember that the DC-10 went through an unfortunate period in the late 70s/early 80s when it kept crashing. Or am I imagining that?