Pizza to Go

Life with my Mother, Miss Patsy, was never ordinary. She had a genuine enthusiasm for life, and a unique flair that expressed itself in every living day. She believed in having fun, and in making a statement.

Even a mundane task such as being dropped off at school would reflect her art of living. Imagine an elementary school in the late 1960's. A line of avocado green and harvest gold station wagons with wood grain siding are lined up to discharge America's youth for a day of learning.

Alongside pulls a midnight blue Camaro SS convertible with a red leatherette interior and white bumblebee stripes. The top is down. The non-matronly driver is Miss Patsy. She is wearing hip-huggers, a white leather belt, and a knit tank top blouse. She has a Winston in one hand and her beehive hairdo is lacquered to the point of hurricane preparedness. She has more than a passing resemblance to Cousin Serena. And so begins another day of school.

Fast forward to the mid-seventies. The Camaro has been replaced by a little five-speed Porsche with a removable top. It's a spring day and we are headed into town to pick up a pizza. She's having fun putting the little car though its paces- the strong clutch and racing style gearbox. She's not being reckless, but is holding the gears and driving spiritedly- like putting a thoroughbred horse through its paces.

About a mile from the pizza joint, we spy a police helicopter overhead. "They're not interested in us" she says. We gaze overhead and they do indeed seem to be following us. "Here's where we lose them" she says as she downshifts to second and executes a power turn into the parking lot.

The helicopter lands.

Miss Patsy looks a bit white faced at this point. I turn to her and ask, "Can I have the money now?" I begin to wonder if I'll be baking her a cake with a file in it. Now that I think of it, she does look good in stripes.

One of the Officers approaches. "Nice car" he says with a wink, then turns and walks to the door.

They had ordered a pizza too.

The Great Ghastly

Robert Redford as Gatsby with a Rolls-Royce, 1974

Yet another remake of "The Great Gatsby," the timeless Twenties novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald about star-crossed romance, longing, and bootlegging, opened this week to decidedly mixed reviews. This time the film is an over the top vulgarpocalypse, by director Baz Luhrmann who is either ignorant of history, unable to read the book upon which his film is based, or just guilty of directorial malpractice.

The yellow Rolls-Royce Phantom I from the 1974 film

Let me give you a revelation- the Twenties were not the Thirties. The Twenties were a whoopee decade, with a soaring stock market, endless prosperity, and paradoxically, prohibition. The thirties were the hangover that followed the drunken excesses of the decade that preceded it. Depression, joblessness, poverty for millions of people. Gatsby is set in the Twenties. The story falls apart in the Thirties.

1933 Auburn Speedster and Duesenberg replica in the 2013 film (Warner Bros)

Automobiles play a very important role in Gatsby. Fitzgerald specified a yellow Rolls-Royce Tourer for Gastby, and a roadster for Jordan Baker. So how did Baz come up with a Duesenberg Model J for Gastby? They even weren't introduced until the 1929 model year and were made through 1937. And who thought they could put Jordan Baker in a 1933 Auburn Speedster? This isn't rocket science, guys. There weren't Duesenberg Model Js and Auburn Speedsters in 1922. So are you telling a 1922 story with cars that won't me made for seven to ten years, or have you moved the story to the thirties and hoped we wouldn't notice?

The Duesenberg replica in the 2013 film (Warner Bros)

Time impossibility aside, there's still another major problem with this- Gatsby would NEVER have chosen a Duesenberg J, even if it existed in time. The Mighty J was indeed a powerful and impressive car, but it was far too flashy and vulgar for Gatsby. Gatsby WAS nouveau riche, and desperately wanted to be a blue blood.

Chrome plated exhaust pipes snaking out of the hood was not the path to old money. The Rolls-Royce was the blue blood choice- very expensive, but more understated and more accepted in high society. For Gatsby, The Rolls-Royce was the only choice. Fitzgerald didn't just pluck the name out of a hat- he knew what he was doing.

A pair of Duesenberg convertibles from the 1949 version

It's not the first time that this mistake has been made. The 1949 Elliott Nugent version starred Alan Ladd and a pair of Duesenberg Rollston SJ convertible coupes- but this inaccuracy was corrected in the 1974 Robert Redford film directed by Jack Clayton. The  1974 version starred a Rolls-Royce Phantom I that, while slightly newer than the story, was at least of the correct era and most closely fitted Fitzgerald's vision of any of the film versions So Baz unlearned what had been learned and somehow this is progress.

And then there's the snicker when I noticed that the Duesenberg in question was a knockoff. Call it a replica, call it a tribute, I call it a fake. It's a pile of fiberglass on a Ford F-150 truck frame, and oddly that's slightly comforting to me. I admit that I'm critical of cars in period films, but it seems like someone other than just myself should have asked what the hell they were doing. Call me a car snob, you can't remake "The Love Bug" with a Prius or "Smokey and the Bandit" with a Camry. I don't know what movie Baz made with his plastic faux Duesenberg, but it wasn't "The Great Gatsby." "The Great Ghastly" is more like it.

One Year Later- Palm Springs Automobilist Facebook Page Has First Anniversary

 Quite a little milestone for us as the Palm Springs Automobilist Facebook Page went live one year ago today. In that year, we've had over 5,700 fans join our merry band, shared over 3,300 cool photos, and grown to the point where our posts reach over 100,000 people weekly.

To commemorate, we're sharing our first live photo above- it's the special gold painted 1956 Eldorado Biarritz from "The Solid Gold Cadillac" starring Judy Holliday. It got us rolling on May 6, 2012, and we've been far too busy to look back.

This 1959 Chevrolet advertisement was our first cover photo. It's an awesome photo that shows the amazing depth of Chevy's product line for '59. Except for the Corvette- all of the entries are based on the all new '59 Full Sized Chevrolet, even the brand new El Camino, and who doesn't love the bat winged Chevrolet madly? Our folks sure seem to.

And here's our top photo of the year. Of the 3,300 plus photos last year, this lovely portrait of Annette Funicello with her candy custom painted '57 Thunderbird was our most liked and shared. A great tribute to a lovely lady.

We've got the rest of the top 10 photos of the year and lots more over on the Palm Springs Automobilist Facebook Page. We hope that you enkoyed the year as much as we did and look forward to more!

2013 Buick Regal Six Speed- Son of Saab

The last time I drove the Buick Regal GS Sport Sedan,I found it to be the most engaging Buick since the Grand National, although thoroughly different in character. Recently I spent a week behind the wheel of a 2013 model with the six speed manual transmission and came to a slightly different revelation. It's not the return of the Grand National-  it's the Son of Saab.

Yes, Son of Saab- which, as a past Saab owner, is not the least bit disparaging but rather an observation. A front drive, four cylinder turbocharged compact sport sedan with tons of power, stick-like-glue handling and highly supportive seats? If it had a floor mounted ignition and Night Panel it would be a 9-3 Aero.

When I  went to the press launch for the Regal back in 2010 and drove both the 2.4 conventionally aspirated 182 HP and the 2.0 Turbocharged 220 HP versions, I described the Epsilon based mid sized sedans as "well tailored and well mannered" and thought they were an excellent addition to the Buick line up. I found the 2.4 to be a bit sluggish and the 2.0 Turbo to have a very pleasing power band, but didn't think of either as a performance sedan.

The GS version is highly modified from the base model. The 2.0 Litre Turbo in the GS is the High Output Ecotec 2.0L Turbo with Direct Injection and Variable Valve Timing. It's rated at 270 HP and 295 lb/ft of torque. On paper it exceeds the '87 Grand National's 245 rated HP and falls just short of the  GNX's 274, but since both those engines were underrated, its probably about on a par with the Intercooled Grand National. It is offered with a 6 speed manual or 6 speed automatic transmissions.  

It's dressed up considerably from the base version as well. It has a deep skirted front fascia flanked by Bi-Xenon HIS headlamps and a unique rear one with dual exhaust ports. There are special rocker panels. a rear spoiler, and 19" twin spoke alloy wheels with Pirelli tires and optional highly polished 20s. Peek through the spokes and note the big Brembo calipers. Pirellis and Brembos- not a combination normally associated with Buick. 

The inside is toned up as well. The interior is offered in ebony leather only, with special touches such as a leather wrapped F1 style steering wheel, piano black dash trim. and leather trimmed sport seats with pretty wicked bolsters.  A Special GS Interactive Drive Control system offers standard, Sport and GS settings for the suspension. GM's Intellilink is standard, along with a pretty killer 336 watt Harmon Kardon Audio system with 9 speakers and XM Satellite radio. 

Options are few, and colors are sadly limited. A total of five colors are available- Quicksilver and Smoky Gray are standard, White Diamond, Carbon Black Metallic and Crystal Red Tintcoat are optional. So out of five colors, three are gray, and three are extra cost. I wake up screaming. (Memo to Buick: The Audi A4 has ten. Love, Jeff) The rest of the option list is equally short- 20" polished wheels and performance tires, power sliding sunroof, GPS Navigation

My test car was finished in the Crystal Red Tintcoat and features the meaty 20" wheel package. I found it to be quite a handsome and purposeful looking car and others seemed to agree. I found neighbors in the driveway admiring it, and found it to be a topic of conversation from the couple at the table next to mine when I parked it at an outdoor cafe. All good signs as far as I am concerned. 

But enough looking, time to see what happens when the rubber meets the road. Touch the starter button and the 2.0 Turbo comes to life. It's smooth, Buick V8 smooth and the exhaust note is quiet. Shift into first and the car feels powerful, but doesn't play all of its cards. In fact, you could drive the GS in drive and your impression would be a smooth, well balanced sport sedan with a poised ride, excellent handling and crazy good brakes. The engine has an excellent torque band, but the automatic felt like it was always one gear too high. The six speed manual, however, is ideally suited to the car. The shifter is quick and precise- you'd swear that Audi did it- and it's a pleasure to run through the gears. It's much more Sweden than Skylark to drive. 

One thing that still annoys me are the suspension settings. There are three modes- Standard, Sport and GS. There's a discernible difference between Standard and GS but the Sport is just kind of there. And annoyingly, the car doesn't recall the setting past the next off cycle, so it's touch the button every single time you start the car. Of course I found it happiest in GS suspension mode.  Steering and ride are both tightened, and the Turbo soars up to redline without the slightest hesitation. The car is now crazy fun, and sticks like glue to the tarmac. The Brembo brakes are killer and bring the GS down out of harm's way in no time flat. 

Last year I said  that the Regal GS is the most fun I've had behind the wheel of a Buick since the Grand National. And the six speed only reinforces my conclusion. And while I still want to see Buick go all black and give is Darth Buick with 300 HP, maybe they should call it Viggen instead of Grand National.
Now, about putting the ignition on the floor...

The Story of Ruth- A Very Special Buick Super

Ruth Helm and her new Super in Palm Springs, April 1954

A car can be more than just a car. Sometimes it's a time machine as well, like the story I'm going to share with you about a very special 1954 Buick. Not a Buick Special, but a special Buick indeed.

"The Beautiful Buy"

It was the spring of 1954 in the little farming town of Caney, Kansas, which was located in the Eastern third of the state just north of the Oklahoma border. Buick advertised itself in 1954 as "The Beautiful Buy" and the local grocer, Joe Elliott was much impressed with the new Buick line up. There were only Ford and Chevrolet agencies in town, so he decided to drive over to Coffeyville and have a look. He stopped by the market to get some cash from the safe and also to pick up his only grandson, Blaine Jenkins, to accompany him on the twenty mile trip. Blaine had just turned twenty and loved automobiles more than anything. He was studying architecture at the University of Kansas but had just applied to Art Center in Los Angeles and wanted to design cars. But today he and his Grandfather were focused on just one car- a new 1954 Buick.

They checked out all the cars in the showroom in Coffeyville and it turns out that they both were both taken by the same one- a new 1954 Super sedan in a color called Casino Beige with a green top. Mr. Elliott summoned the salesperson and signaled his intentions with a roll of bills. Soon he and Blaine were on the way back to Caney in the handsome new Super. To this day, Blaine recalls how thrilling the drive home was.

Motor Trend profiles the 1954 Buick

It turns out that Joe Elliott wasn't the only person enamored of the new '54 Buick. Halfway across the country,  in Hollywood, California, a lady named Ruth Helm was driving her 1948 Buick convertible past the Phil Hall Buick Showroom in on Sunset Boulevard, when a brand new Super convertible caught her eye. Coincidentally, this Super was also finished in the handsome Casino Beige, with a two tone green interior. She telephoned her husband Harvey at work that very afternoon to tell him she had seen a new Buick that she wished to buy.

George Burns and Gracie Allen

Ruth seldom telephoned Harvey at work. As the Head Writer of the George Burns and Gracie Allen Television Show, Harvey was pretty busy working on a new show every week. Besides, Ruth had her own income serving as the President of the Hollywood Democratic Club as well as being a Personal Assistant to actor Eddie Albert. But nonetheless she phoned Harvey, who like much of Hollywood was a Buick owner himself, and told him of the beautiful new car. He told her that it's her money, and by all means to buy it if she wanted it.

The new Super in the Desert- Palm Springs, April 1954

Ruth drove the car out of Phil Hall's Showroom on March 31, 1954. Almost immediately she and Harvey took it on a spring trip to Palm Springs, where they stayed with George Burns and Gracie Allen at their desert home. Of course they took pictures of the beautiful new Buick that she placed in her photo album. The album shows several other trips as well- La Jolla, Half Moon Bay, and what appears to be Lake Tahoe. The big Buick was an excellent road car, and the three of them traveled well together.

Harvey Helm and the Super in La Jolla, 1956

Harvey and the Super at Pigeon Point, Pescadero CA 1956

Now these stories might seen totally unrelated but fate has a way of making people intersect. Back in Kansas, young Blaine had been accepted into Art Center and was preparing for a move to Los Angeles. His Mother suggested that she look up her old College Roommate there, a lady she knew as Ruth Van Eaton, but Ruth was now Mrs. Harvey Helm. Blaine arrived in Los Angeles in the fall and did indeed look up the Helms. His first memory was seeing her nearly new 1954 Super convertible, in the same Casino Beige that his Grandfather had. Sitting beside it in the garage was Harvey's new 1955 powder blue Century convertible, so they obviously had been pleased with Ruth's purchase.

Harvey, Ruth and Blaine clean out the garage, 1955 This snapshot shows everyone who has ever owned the car.

The childless couple took Blaine under their wing and became his honorary extended family.  Both of Blaine's parents had been only children, so he came to regard the Helms as the Aunt and Uncle he never had. He recalls chauffeuring Ruth in the '54 and riding with Harvey in the blue '55. He tended bar for their Hollywood parties and met any of the celebrities of the day, and they all watched the Burns and Allen Show together on Tuesday nights. He had one special memory of accompanying Harvey to the VIP opening of Disneyland in 1956. Being the Head Writer for Burns and Allen had its perks.

Blaine and Harvey head to Disneyland, July 17, 1955

But his time in Los Angeles was growing short. Graduation from Art Center neared and Blaine was offered a job at General Motors at the brand new Technical Center in Warren. He bade the Helms and their pair of convertibles farewell and drove East to start his career. And quite a career it was, becoming first a designer and later a Studio Chief, working on many, many Chevrolet and later Oldsmobile products including the Mako Shark and nearly every Corvair. Creating the first Monza, the first Caprice, and the first Ninety Eight Regency were just a few among his many accomplishments.

Ruth's Lubricare card from Phil Hall Buick

From time to time, travel would take Blaine to Los Angeles and he would look up the Helms. He continued to keep in contact with Ruth even after Harvey passed away in 1965. Ruth got herself a new Buick in 1968, but being unimpressed with the trade allowance she simply kept the old '54, and the two cars sat side by side in her garage. Her health declined and they eventually stopped corresponding.

And then, in the Autumn of 1976, Blaine Jenkins got a letter from Los Angeles. It was from the Helms' family attorney, advising Blaine that Ruth Helm had passed away in late summer, and that he had been left the Buick in her will. The purpose of the letter was to politely ask if he indeed wanted the car, which at that point had sat unused inside the garage for several years and was valued by the Estate Appraiser at a mere two hundred dollars. Blaine didn't hesitate for a second and advised the Estate that he did indeed wish to have it. It took a few months for everything to be settled, but by the spring of 1977 a dusty old Buick was on a truck to Detroit.

"Ruth" arrives in Detroit, 1977

The Buick, which Blaine called Ruth after his friend, arrived looking a bit neglected. The original paint was thin and the top was worn. Careless movers had dented the bumper and broke the grille. The interior had some seams coming apart and the carpet was worn through. But all in all, it was a straight, solid, and rust free example of a 1954 Super convertible with just over 80,000 original miles- and one of only 3,343 produced. He got it running and drove it for a few seasons, before taking it down for a proper restoration.

The Super in Unrestored condition, 1980

The car was largely disassembled and stripped down, Except for a past repair to the passenger door, it was in remarkably good condition. It was refinished in the original Casino Beige and the bright work was polished and replated as needed. The top frame was restored and a new top and well were sewn. The engine and transmission came out and both were rebuilt and detailed. But the green interior was largely reused. The seats were resewn and the door panels simply cleaned. New carpeting and rubber was installed, and the dash and garnish moldings repainted. The only change from original was the addition of a set of chrome plated wire wheels, which were a correct factory option for the car.

Under restoration in 1986

Going back together, late 1986

Resplendent Ruth upon completion, 1987

Blaine is long retired from General Motors, and lives in Palm Springs with his partner of 38 years, Philip. He's owned a number of classic cars over the years but there's one in his garage that he will never part with. After all, he's had it for thirty seven years- almost twice as long as the original owner did. Even more remarkable, the Super hasn't been in the stream of commerce since Ruth Helm handed over a check almost 59 years ago to the day. The Buick shines as brightly as it did when the restoration was completed almost 25 years ago.

Blaine is recovering from surgery these days and doesn't drive himself, so I make it a point to drop by and take him for a ride in the Buick he has known for almost six decades. The Buick rolls along on glistening wire wheels, incapable of processing the passage of time. I glance over at him when we drive, and I'm not sure if it's Joe Elliott or Ruth Helm that he's visualizing riding along with us.

Blaine, Philip and "Ruth" March, 2013

As I said, a car can be more than just a car. Sometimes it's a time machine as well.

Special Thanks to Casey Shain of the Art and Colour Blog for photo restoration. 

World of Color: And then there's Mauve

Yes, it's a pun, and it's a color. More of a scale than a color. Somewhere from purplish rose to greyed grape, the universal element being a shade of purple. Sometime the word itself is included in the color name, like the "Mauve Metallic" 1966 Charger above, other times the color is given an ethereal and evocative name- as in Chevrolet's 1965 "Evening Orchid." The best name of all was probably Cadillac's "Persian Sand" of 1959.

Of course we're talking about Mauve, the purplish pinkish pastel that wormed its way into our hearts, minds, and cars beginning in the late 50s, and for ten or so stylish years appeared on our showroom floors. More sophisticated than red, cooler than blue, and always in the best of taste, we lift our hats to the many shades of  Mauve: 

Canned Hams and Classic Campers

The Palm Springs Trailer Show is in its third year and is rapidly becoming one of my favorite Modernism Week events. What started as a handful of trailers has grown in both number and quality into a very impressive study of the evolution of the recreational vehicle. The quality of the coaches, in both restored classic and interpreted, is simply amazing. The aluminum exteriors were so mirror polished that it was literally difficult to photograph them. And the addition of tow vehicles, both real and depiction, had added immensely to the event.

There was quite a range of vehicles depicted, from the cute little "Canned Hams," nicknamed for their shape, to the larger Airstreams and Spartans, to the Truck Campers and even a camper conversion on a 1951 Cadillac Superior Hearse. In addition, vintage Motor Homes have joined the show this year and proved to be mesmerizing examples of our roadside history
.

There were so many wonderful campers of such diverse styles that I couldn't choose a favorite. The lime green Corvair powered Travalon (later reorganzied as the Ultra Van) was a real crowd pleaser, and the 1966 Ford Condor featured a completely original and intact interior, right down to the plaid herculon, tooled vinyl trim, and aqua appliances to accent the exterior.

An all original 1953 Boles Aero trailer had been garaged for over 35 years and offered a time capsule look into vacation travel sixty years ago, And the Best In Show winner was truly remarkable- a space age 1962 Holiday House- made by the Harry and David Fruit Company- was so original even the linoleum floors were intact. It was completely authentic and glowed like it had been dripped in chrome.

So put on your sunglasses and enjoy some very shiny Canned Hams and Classic Campers: