is 1st gear designed to kill the driver

A good stick shift driver can shift smoother than an automatic can

Yup that looks like the old gal but mine is skyblue with a white top.this advice is all gold to.me big time and my wife is already trying to get the car off of me

This is a funny thread to read. My second car was a 1930 Ford with a 3 speed non-syncro transmission.  (My first a 1947 Desoto with Fluid Drive a semi-automatic.) I soon learned how to shift it with out using the clutch other than to start from a dead stop. A non-syncromesh transmission where all gears had no syncro's was known as a crash box. Recently a fellow down the street bought a restored 1926ish Chevy. You could here him shift if for blocks.
Cadillac introduced syncromesh in 1928.  AMC had to be one of the last to use a non syncromesh low or 1st gear in automotive transmissions in the USA.

As memory serves Chrysler called a couple of different variations "Fluid drive" and I am not sure why or what models or years they were.
But
There was a Semi-automatic with not a torque converter, but  a hydraulic coupling that ran off of engine oil between the end of the engine and the clutch. In one form, it was just that.  There was a clutch and a 3 speed transmission. With reverse. You needed the clutch to put the car in gear but once in gear you could either 1) Use the clutch and shift from 1 through 3 and such like normal OR, once in high or 3rd gear, you could just leave it there and drive with the gas and the brake and once stopped the fluid coupling would slip, allowing the engine to run with out stalling and given enough time drive from a dead stop still in high gear. 
A little old ladies clutchless driving car once it was in gear.
The other version was a semi automatic,  The quatrant was the H on the column with reverse as normal,  Low or 1st in the 2nd gear position and 2nd and high or 3rd in the 3rd gear position.
You need a clutch to put the car into 2nd from a dead stop.  You can then release the clutch and the fluid coupling would slip.  Step on the gas, the car moved forward from a dead stop in 2nd gear, release the gas and a vacuum system shifted the manual transmission from 2nd to 3rd and you continue driving.  come to a stop,  the vacuum system shifted the car from 3rd back to 2nd so you could go forward again. 1st gear (now in the 2nd gear slot on the H patern was only used to move heavy loads from a dead stop, like pulling a trailer.  And a clutch was used to shift from the start gear to the driving gears if you wished.
The fluid coupling was not a torque converter and used engine oil.
I had a 47 Desoto with "Fluid Drive" the semi automatic.  The later Dodge use a Fluid Drive that consisted of only the fluid coupling.
I have some data on these things, not too sure how much but can look it up if you want.  And no I do not know what other names these were called.

I have the same transmission in my Rebel.  It takes some getting used to!  The way I taught my sister-in-law to drive a stick was basically let the clutch out slowly and as you start to hear the engine bog down, give it gas to bring it back up.  Then let out some more clutch and as it bogs again, give it more gas.  Do that until the clutch is completely let out.  Eventually it will become one fluid motion and you won't even think about it.  The absolute hardest part of learning to drive a stick is starting on hills.  Especially steep ones.  Once you've mastered flat takeoffs, I suggest practicing on a hill that gets little traffic.