You Can't Make This Stuff Up!

[Lee Stewart]

Design for the 1975 Barracuda

[Lee Stewart]

Across the street from my house in N. Merrick L.I. were the Brenners: Bob and Gail. He was a math teacher at Valley Stream High and I can't remember where Gail worked. Anyways Bob sorta took me under his wing and took over the role as Dad for me when I was 11. My parents had got divorced. He was so cool.

He had this old Model A 1931 Ford his father gave him and on weekends I would help him clean it up and do light sanding. It had something I had never seen before: a Rumble Seat.

One weekend during the summer of 1963 (I was 12) I went to help and the car wasn't in his garage. I asked him what happened to it. He told me not to worry - it would return in a couple of weeks. Sure enough it did. He took it to Earl Scheib and had it painted then brought it to some place where they did the upholstery: dark gray.

"Want to take a ride?"

So we went, just the two of us for a short ride. I told him we should get Gail and go for ice cream. That way I could ride in the rumble seat. And the coolest part of the car . . . the ahooga horn.

They had twins: Alexander and Gigi. Once I hit 14 I was their baby sitter. My son Alex is named after the boy. I took care of the kids until I was 16 when we left L.I. and moved to Forest Hills.

Bob's car - it had maroon wheels.

[Lee Stewart]

[Lee Stewart]

[LT1vette]

Originally Posted by Lee Stewart

This dealership was 5 minutes from my house. I remember seeing these cars in the dealership and on the road.
There were a lot of "pretenders" though. That was a very common taillight modification to Mustangs in the city that following year...

[60sStuff]

Originally Posted by Lee Stewart

Love this interior on this modified corvette.

[60sStuff]

How many of you used these “Anodized aluminum tumblers” back in the day.

These were great for your Kool-Aid back then, or a refreshing Gin and Tonic today.

I bought this Original set of Bascal tumblers years ago to use when I showed my Schwinn Stingrays.

They both have those brilliant radiant colors.

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by Lee Stewart

He had this old Model A 1931 Ford his father gave him and on weekends I would help him clean it up and do light sanding. It had something I had never seen before: a Rumble Seat.

One weekend during the summer of 1963 (I was 12) I went to help and the car wasn't in his garage. I asked him what happened to it. He told me not to worry - it would return in a couple of weeks. Sure enough it did. He took it to Earl Scheib and had it painted then brought it to some place where they did the upholstery: dark gray.

"Want to take a ride?"

So we went, just the two of us for a short ride. I told him we should get Gail and go for ice cream. That way I could ride in the rumble seat. And the coolest part of the car . . . the ahooga horn.

I had one as well. It was a sweet little car, driver quality, and you get a lot of "old car bang" for your buck.

In fact - it was embarrassing.

I'd be in a parade of really nice Model A's: pickups, tudors, business coupes, etc. and you could see people looking right past them, craning their necks. Then they'd say "...there it is!. There's the rumble seat car!!".

I won "best of show" at a little church car show one time. I thought to myself "that just tells me you people don't know what a nicely restored Model A looks like".

K

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by Lee Stewart

"Motorama" style side spear on the car, rather than the production version.

K

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by Lee Stewart

Completed Oldsmobile Toronado bodies leaving the Fisher Body Company plant in Euclid, Ohio, bound for final assembly in Lansing, Michigan.

Can you believe that?

Approx 250 mile trip before the car is even new.

I bet they were shocked (...shocked, I say) when the paint on the front clip did not match the rest of the car.

K